Paolini survives Fernandez scare, Swiatek beats Azarenka to reach quarters

Second seed Jasmine Paolini overcame a brave fightback from Leylah Fernandez to beat her 7-6(8) 7-6(6) in a dramatic round of 16 clash at the Bad Homburg Open on Tuesday in which Fernandez saved four match points.

Paolini edged the opening set in a tiebreak, saving a set point at 5-4 before sealing it 10-8 after a gruelling 26-shot rally.

The Italian looked on course for a straight-sets win when she led 5-2 in the second, but Canadian Fernandez saved a match point with an ace and clawed her way back.

Paolini held more match points at 6-5, but Fernandez saved all three to force a tiebreak. Fernandez went up 6-4 in the breaker, but Paolini held firm, saving two set points before clinching victory on her fifth match point.

Despite converting only five of her 17 break points, Paolini secured her first win on grass this season after a two and a half hour match.

“It’s very fun to play on grass, but you have to get used to it and you have to have confidence as well in your game, if not it’s really tough,” Paolini said.

Fourth seed Iga Swiatek overcame a slow start to defeat Belarusian Victoria Azarenka 6-4 6-4. After trailing 2-4, Swiatek broke Azarenka back for 4-3 and held to level.

The Pole broke again for 5-4 and saved two break points in a tense final game before Azarenka sent a forehand wide to concede the set. The players traded breaks early in the second set before Swiatek pulled away.

After breaking for 4-3, the top seed held serve twice more to seal the win in straight sets.

Krejcikova overcomes Dart: Top seed Barbora Krejcikova saved two match points on the way to a 6-3 6-7(4) 7-5 victory over Briton Harriet Dart at the Eastbourne Open on Tuesday, only her second singles win of the grass season before her Wimbledon title defence begins.

Czech Krejcikova, who returned to action last month after a back injury had kept her out of action since November, needed two hours and 40 minutes to secure the win at a breezy Devonshire Park.

Having taken a scrappy opening set, Krejcikova continued to struggle with the wind and was involved in a heated exchange with the umpire after earning a time violation for taking too long on serve, with Dart taking advantage.

The 124th-ranked Dart broke to level the set at 6-6 and sailed through the tiebreaker as Krejcikova’s second serve faltered. Dart looked poised for victory when leading 5-3 in the decider and had two match points at 5-4 but her game disintegrated as Krejcikova dug deep.

A deflated Dart let out a frustrated scream after losing her advantage and crumbled in her final service game as she was broken to love.

British number one Emma Raducanu looked like following Dart out as she struggled against American Ann Li but the former US Open champion recovered to win 6-7(5) 6-3 6-1.

Former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin of the United States was beaten 6-4 6-4 by Kimberly Birrell.

Murray to be immortalised with statue at Wimbledon: Wimbledon will soon feature a permanent tribute to one of Britain’s sporting greats, as the All England Club announced plans to honour Andy Murray with a statue at the iconic tennis venue.

The 38-year-old retired in August after an appearance at the Paris Olympics and will get his own statue after ending Britain’s 77-year wait for a home men’s singles champion in 2013 when he beat Novak Djokovic in the final.

Murray won Wimbledon again in 2016 and was knighted the next year for his services to tennis and charity.

A popular player on and off the court, Murray reached world number one and claimed three Grand Slam singles titles during his career despite competing in an era dominated by greats such as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic.

“We are looking to have a statue of Andy Murray here (at Wimbledon) and we’re working closely with him and his team,” chair of the All England Club Debbie Jevans said.

Agencies