Ron Tong
Yuta Kikuchi played in another final in San Francisco on Sunday.
SAN FRANCISCO – Cal’s Yuta Kikuchi capped an excellent run in the annual KPSF Open with an appearance in the final on Sunday at the Goldman Tennis Center, with the Golden Bear falling to pro player Govind Nanda. The Golden Bears had a strong showing overall in the outdoor 40K tournament, with six current Cal men’s tennis players – Kikuchi, Alex Chang, John Kim, Lucas Magnaudet, Carl Emil Overbeck and Mikey Wright – along with alumnus Sean Hill competing in Golden Gate Park.
Chang, Kikuchi and Magnaudet along with Hill won in the opening round of 32 on Oct. 12, and then Hill and Kikuchi – who defeated Chang, 6-4, 6-3 – advanced out of the round of 16 on Oct. 13.
Now a graduate student, the third-seeded Kikuchi defeated the fifth-seeded Hill, his former teammate, in the Oct. 14 quarterfinals, 0-6, 6-3, 6-3. The Japan native then topped pro player Aidan Mayo, the second seed, in Saturday’s semifinals, 7-6(4), 6-2.
In the final, Kikuchi lost to the fourth-seeded Nanda, 6-4, 6-1.
This marked the second time this fall that Kikuchi reached a final in San Francisco, as he paired with Overbeck to repeat as the Battle in the Bay Classic doubles champions on Sept. 25.
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KPSF Open – Cal Results
Oct. 12-16, 2022, in San Francisco, Calif.
Goldman Tennis Center
Main Draw Singles – Round of 32
[3] Yuta Kikuchi def. John Kim, 6-7(4), 6-3, 10-4
Alex Chang def. Daniel Cardiff, 6-4, 6-0
Lucas Magnaudet def. Arjith Jayaraman, 3-6, 6-2, 10-2
Emon van Loben def. [5] Carl Emil Overbeck, 7-5, 7-6(2)
Moritz Hoffmann def. Mikey Wright, 6-1, 6-1
Main Draw Singles – Round of 16
[3] Yuta Kikuchi def. Alex Chang, 6-4, 6-3
Neel Rajesh def. Lucas Magnaudet, 1-6, 7-5, 10-3
Main Draw Singles – Quarterfinal Round
[3] Yuta Kikuchi def. [5] Sean Hill, 0-6, 6-3, 6-3
Main Draw Singles – Semifinal Round
[3] Yuta Kikuchi def. [2] Aidan Mayo, 7-6(4), 6-2
Main Draw Singles Final
[4] Govind Nanda def. [3] Yuta Kikuchi, 6-4, 6-1