Puerto Vallarta Open: Lucky loser Kessler wins first career title

American lucky loser Mccartney Kessler won the Puerto Vallarta Open tournament by defeating Australian wildcard Taylah Preston 5-7, 6-3, 6-0 on Monday night.

It’s the first WTA title of any sort for Kessler, who rose 34 places to a career-high ranking of world No 119 as a result.

Ahead of her victory, Kessler beat Serb Natalija Stevanovic (6-3, 6-1), No 6 seed Claire Liu (6-4, 6-3), Frenchwoman Leolia Jeanjean (6-2, 6-1) and No 7 seed Hailey Baptiste (6-4, 6-4).

Preston, ranked No 192, defeated Spaniard Nuria Parrizas Diaz (6-4, 6-1), Argentinian Julia Riera, the No 8 seed (2-6, 7-5, 6-4), Ukrainian Yulia Starodubtseva (7-5, 6-4) and Argentinian Maria Lourdes Carle, the No 5 seed (6-2, 6-2) in the previous rounds.