The former N°49-ranked British female tennis player, Heather Watson who subsequently plummeted to N°92, continues her wretched 2013 season with a loss in straight sets ( 6-4 6-4) to Monica Puig at the Japan Open.

However Second seed Samantha Stosur was barely troubled as she beat Johanna Larsson 6-4 6-2, while wildcard Kurumi Nara saw off Caroline Garcia 6-3 6-2.

Fourth seed Eugenie Bouchard also secured her place in the second round with a straight-sets win, the Canadian overcoming Varvara Lepchenko 6-3 6-0, while Misaki Doi toppled Silvia Soler-Espinosa 6-1 6-2.