By Tony Fairbairn
- Billy Harris [WC] v Charles Broom [LL] | H2H: First Meeting
- Giles Hussey [LL] v Flavio Cobolli | H2H: First Meeting
EASTBOURNE, ENGLAND – Billy Harris headlines the British second round action in Eastbourne as lucky losers seize their opportunity.
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Billy Harris [WC] v Charles Broom [LL] | H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Billy Harris [WC] v Charles Broom [LL] | H2H: First Meeting |
| ATP Eastbourne 2024 | Eastbourne, England |
| Grass (O) | Prize Money: €12,990 |
| First on Court Two (11:00 BST) | BBC IPlayer |
Billy Harris has continued his good form into Eastbourne as he defeated Nottingham champion Jacob Fearnley to reach the second round. Harris is looking to continue his climb up the rankings after having a very good last six months on the Challenger circuit as well as reaching the quarter-finals at Queen’s Club last week. Another deep run at Eastbourne would set him up nicely ahead of his maiden Wimbledon appearance next week.
In the second round, Harris will now face another Brit in the form of lucky loser Charles Broom. Broom was expected to be heading to Wimbledon after losing in final round qualifying at Eastbourne. However Broom swept up two rewards in one as he had his qualifying wildcard upgraded to a main draw wildcard by the AELTC. Then the Brit received a lucky loser spot into the draw after Queen’s Club champion Tommy Paul withdrew from Eastbourne. The world number 245 does head into Eastbourne with form having reached the final in Nottingham before losing to Fearnley in the final and Broom aims to continue to boost his confidence ahead of SW19.
Harris will continue to be consistent on serve as he looks to dictate most of the play on his forehand side. Meanwhile Broom will attack the net in order to shorten the points and move Harris into uncomfortable positions behind the baseline. This will be another decent test for Harris but the Brit should have enough to move into the quarter-finals at Eastbourne.
Prediction: Harris in three sets.
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Giles Hussey [LL] v Flavio Cobolli | H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Gilles Hussey [LL] v Flavio Cobolli | H2H: First Meeting |
| ATP Eastbourne 2024 | Eastbourne, England |
| Grass (O) | Prize Money: €12,990 |
| Third on Court Five (14:00 BST) | BBC IPlayer |
A last-minute call for Giles Hussey saw the world number 359 play a rare ATP tour match. The Brit took full advantage of the opportunity as he knocked out sixth seed Mariano Navone in a convincing straight sets win. The 27 year-old has won ITF events this season on hard courts and that confidence was clear to see in his Eastbourne opener as he aims to earn vital ATP points in order to boost his ranking ahead of the rest of the year.
Next for Hussey is in-form Italian Flavio Cobolli. The 22 year-old has had a good season in which he climbed up the rankings to the world’s top 50 as well as reaching the semi-finals in Geneva. In the current surge of Italian tennis, Cobolli is the latest player to benefit from the golden generation as his all-court game has caused many players problems this season as he now looks to make an impact on grass.
Hussey will aim to continue his attacking tennis as he will need to rush Cobolli’s game by making sneaky moves into the net. Meanwhile Cobolli will use the backhand to create angles as he looks to force Hussey into tactical errors. This should be a good experience for Hussey to take into the rest of the season but Cobolli should have too much quality.
Prediction: Cobolli in straight sets.
Emil Ruusuvuori def Cameron Norrie 7-6(9) 6-3; Yoshihito Nishioka [Q] def Liam Broady [WC] 6-3 6-4
As for Cameron Norrie and Liam Broady they both suffered first round exits to Emil Ruusuvuori and Yoshihito Nishioka respectively. Norrie’s frustrating season continued after failing to convert two set points in the opening set which was followed by letting five break points come and go in the second set in a straight sets defeat. Meanwhile on his return to the tour, Broady let a 4-2 lead slip in the second set in a valiant effort.
Both players now head to Wimbledon which starts on the 1st of July.
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