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Jake Davies

Bedene falls, Konta & Moore continue

Jake Davies
Jake Davies

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 By Jake Davies

  • Aljaz Bedene loses in the second round of the Ricoh Open in s-Hertogenbosch.
  • In Nottingham, Johanna Konta and Tara Moore are the last Brits standing and in singles action on Thursday.

S-HERTOGENBOSCH, NETHERLANDS- British No 2. Aljaz Bedene bows out of the Ricoh Open in the second round, while Johanna Konta will play her second round match in Nottingham on Thursday.

 

Bernard Tomic [2] def. Aljaz Bedene 6-4 6-3

The former Wimbledon quarter-finalist was too stern a test for the British No.2 Bedene. Over the last few years, Tomic has underachieved considerably and has not kicked on from previous outstanding results he achieved at such a young age – but on a grass court he continues to show the quality he has in abundance on this surface. Although Bedene will admit that his favourite surface over the years is a hard court, he will be looking to produce even better results when he travels to the tournament in Halle next week.

 

 

Johanna Konta [2] vs Saisai Zheng

Konta, now the British No.1 and World Top 20 player, will be searching to maintain the brilliant year she has produced, following a fantastic Australian Open where she made the semi-finals. Inside the last few years, Konta has hardly set the world alight with her performances at Wimbledon, having never gone past the first round. A debating point is whether a new mindset, with a great coach and a Top 20 worthy mentality should be enough to guide Konta in the right direction in order to have a favourable showing at this year’s coveted event.

In Nottingham, Konta started her campaign particularly well with a great win over Victoria Duval and she will be the heavy favourite in her second round match against Zheng Saisai . Zheng is a very different kind of challenge, but she is a player that Konta has dealt with well in previous encounters – including two wins at majors. Zheng is not a power player. She often applies her tennis with high, loopy balls, which I think works in Konta’s favour as she prefers time behind the ball. This should be another comfortable win for Konta just like her win over her this year in Australia.

Prediction: Konta in two sets

Quick Hits

  • Tara Moore will also continue her Aegon Open campaign when she takes on Christina McHale in the second round
  • In Stuttgart, Roger Federer’s comeback was halted by rain in his opening match, against Taylor Fritz