NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Tennis Kenya acknowledged it erred in granting an Egyptian player entry to a professional tournament after video of her dismal performance that included 20 double faults circulated on social media.
The 21-year-old player, Hajar Abdelkader, was given a wildcard entry and lost 6-0, 6-0 in 37 minutes in a first-round match that raised questions about her level of play. She struggled with serving and court positioning.
Tennis Kenya, the governing body for the sport in the east African country, is hosting the International Tennis Federation’s W35 tournament this week.
“In hindsight, Tennis Kenya acknowledges that this wildcard should not have been granted. The federation has taken note of this experience and will ensure that such an extremely rare occurrence never happens again," it said in a statement Thursday.
The organization's statement said it was “aware of concerns” raised about Abdelkader's participation.
“The slot became available following a short notice withdrawal by the originally awarded main draw wildcard recipient, who opted into the qualifying draw,” Tennis Kenya explained.
“At the time, Ms Abdelkader was the only other player who had requested a wildcard, and the decision was taken on the information provided and in the interest of maintaining a full and balanced draw while supporting the development of tennis in Africa.”
It added: “In this instance, Ms Abdelkader indicated that she had an appropriate level of competitive playing experience, and the wildcard was issued based on the information provided.”
Tennis Kenya said it and the ITF have reached out to both Abdelkader and the winner of the match, Germany's Lorena Schaedel, “to keep the wellbeing of both players as a primary consideration.”
AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Prayer, grounded in divine Love and spiritual law, offers a reliable foundation for healing,… Read moreInspirational Talk on Effective Prayer: Finding healing and wholeness in divine Love
What the Constitution Means to Me Read moreWhat The Constitution Means To Me
Join us for community fun! Free antique and collectible appraisals by Clars Auction. Over 30… Read moreMillbrae Senior Showcase
Yosemite Says said:
jwentworth said:
Dirk van Ulden said:
DavidKristofferson said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.