China's top tennis player, Li Na, kicked off her Pilot Pen Tennis debut with a straight set victory over Maria Kirilenko in New Haven, Connecticut on Monday (Beijing time).

 

Li and Kirilenko are at 20th and 22nd place in the WTA Singles Rankings respectively and were both ruled out at early rounds of the Rogers Cup last week; but the match, predicted to be even, turned out to be a one-side victory.

 

Li's first service point average of 83% in the first set and second service point average of 67% in the second set won her eight break points; she clutched five of them and wound up the match 6-1, 6-2.

 

Li will face either Dinara Safina or Anastasia Myskina in the second round.

 

Another Chinese player Sun Tiantian has gone though the qualifier and will compete in the first round later.

 

(CRI August 21, 2006)