Grand Slam nerves, being a Sir and what I bought my dogs for Christmas

Posted: Jan 16, 2017

2017 Australian Open
Venue: Melbourne Park Dates: 16-29 January
Coverage: Live radio and text commentary of every Andy Murray match on BBC Radio, BBC Sport website and BBC Sport app. Watch highlights on BBC Two and online from 21 January.

The first round of a Grand Slam is always tricky, but I am glad to get through it.

My first-round match against Illya Marchenko, the world number 95, was OK but it was hard going.

It was tough conditions. The on-court temperature was in the high 30s, which wasn’t easy.

I didn’t feel any extra pressure playing my first Grand Slam as the world number one. I felt nervous beforehand, but I get that before all Slams.

I always feel that bit of extra nerves and bit of extra pressure because these are the tournaments that often you work towards. They’re the biggest tournament for tennis players. It would be a bad sign if you weren’t coming in nervous so I treat it as a good sign.

Being nervous shows me that I want to play well and that I’m up for it. Normally nerves tend to make me feel better or play better but I found it tough on Monday in harsh conditions.

The crowd were good. Sometimes in day sessions, when it’s hot as it was, it’s not easy for people to sit out in the sun for that long. There was a great atmosphere and lot of people out there watching.

‘I’m happy with plain old Andy’

After I was knighted I was asked if I wanted to be known as Sir Andy, from whether it was in the draws and on the scoreboards to when I was getting announced.

I’m happy with just plain old Andy, though.

It was an amazing honour to receive, although I have had some mickey-taking with some of the players about calling me ‘Sir’, especially the ones that have known me for a long time.

‘It helps having family here’

In Grand Slams, if you go through to the end, you have two weeks of tennis with a day off after every match.

Kim and Sophia are here with me in Australia and it helps. It’s nice to have them here and take my mind off the tennis when the matches are done.

I have a lot of family here: Kim’s mum is also here, as is Jamie and my mum. In the morning we can have breakfast together as a family and then in the evening, when I get back from practice, Sophia is starting to get ready for bed.

So sadly it means I don’t get to do a lot of the fun stuff with them during the day.

‘I didn’t get the dogs anything for Christmas’

I flew to Australia after being able to have Christmas with my family. My first Christmas as a father was good, but busy.

A lot of Christmases I have been away or at training, so it was good to be able to see Sophia on Christmas Day.

I spent the morning with my wife and daughter and Kim’s family, then I flew at midday up to Scotland and had lunch with my mum’s side of my family. Then in the evening I went to my dad’s to have dinner with his family. It was a busy day and I did all right with presents too.

I didn’t get the dogs anything this Christmas. My wife normally gets them toys and presents, and they get sent lots of stuff from my mum and my grandparents. They do pretty well, but they are just as happy tearing into the wrapping paper on Christmas Day.

Andy Murray was talking to BBC Sport’s Amy Lofthouse.

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Australian Open 2017: Angelique Kerber through, Simona Halep beaten

Posted: Jan 16, 2017

Australian Open 2017
Venue: Melbourne Park, Melbourne Dates: 16-29 Jan
Coverage: Live commentary every day on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra plus TV highlights on BBC Two from 21 January; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website.

World number one Angelique Kerber started the defence of her Australian Open title with a tense 6-2 5-7 6-2 win over Lesia Tsurenko on Rod Laver Arena.

The German top seed was in control at 4-2 up in the second set but two breaks for Tsurenko took it to a decider.

World number four Simona Halep, who needed medical attention on a knee injury, was the first big seed to fall, beaten 6-3 6-1 by Shelby Rogers.

Venus Williams, the 2003 runner-up, beat Kateryna Kozlova 7-6 (7-5) 7-5.

Live scores, results and order of play
Murray and Konta lead GB challenge
Podcast: Australian Open day one review

Kerber labours to victory

Kerber, who saved a match point in round one on her way to the title last year, blew her first match point against Tsurenko as she made hard work of finishing off what had looked to be a straightforward victory.

The 28-year-old had been 5-3 up in the second set but lost the next three games and saved four set points before succumbing on the fifth in a 12th game that lasted almost 10 minutes.

The opening four games of the decider went with serve before Kerber broke Tsurenko’s resolve in game five and then broke again in game seven before holding serve to love to wrap up victory.

“I’m really happy to be back here,” she said. “Everything started here for me when I won my first Grand Slam here.

“I won the match and that’s what counts. The first round is always tough. I’m so happy to be in the second round.”

Halep needs time to recover

Halep said she had been battling her knee problem since the WTA Tour Finals in October.

The 25-year-old had no issues during the off-season but it flared up again in Shenzen two weeks ago.

“I can play about 45, 50 minutes without pain. And then it comes,” said Halep. “Today it was about 5-3 in the first set, so then it was tough to fight and I couldn’t do what I wanted.

“I didn’t see the doctor yet. I need an MRI. I probably need some time off to get it recovered, because it’s difficult to play with the pain.”

American Rogers, beaten in the first round in her only previous Australian Open appearance in 2015, will face the winner of the match between Australia’s Ashleigh Barty and Germany’s Annika Beck in round two.

“It’s pretty incredible, I played really well,” said the world number 52.

Veteran Williams seeking rhythm

The 36-year-old Williams played her first Australian Open in 1998 and turned professional in 1994, the year her opponent was born.

The seven-time Grand Slam champion’s preparations were hindered by an arm injury.

“It’s never easy playing the first round,” said the American 13th seed who made 48 unforced errors. “I was just trying to find my rhythm. She didn’t make it easy so I’m happy to be through.”

Williams next faces either Swiss qualifier Stefanie Voegele or Japan’s Kurumi Nara.

Muguruza battles through

French Open champion Garbine Muguruza needed a medical time-out after the first set for what appeared to be a foot problem but the Spaniard recovered to beat New Zealand’s Marina Erakovic 7-5 6-4.

“It was very tough when you’re playing and starting to feel pain,” said seventh seed Muguruza, who will face American Samantha Crawford in the second round.

Elsewhere, Olympic champion Monica Puig was a dominant 6-0 6-1 winner over Patricia Tig, while Jelena Jankovic, who is playing in her 53rd consecutive Grand Slam, beat Laura Siegemund 6-1 1-6 6-4.

Russia’s Svetlana Kuznetsova, ranked eighth, completed a tidy 6-0 6-1 victory over Colombian Mariana Duque.

Australian teenager Destanee Aiava became the first player born in this millennium to play a main draw match at a major, but the 16-year-old lost 6-3 7-6 (7-4) to German qualifier Mona Barthel.

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Federer Going For Fifth Australian Open Title

Posted: Jan 16, 2017

Federer Going For Fifth Australian Open Title

Jan162017

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Australian Open 2017: Kei Nishikori squeezes through in Melbourne

Posted: Jan 16, 2017

World number five Kei Nishikori reached the Australian Open second round with a five-set victory over Russia’s Andrey Kuznetsov in Melbourne.

Japan’s Nishikori, who needed medical treatment in the final set, beat the world number 45 5-7 6-1 6-4 6-7 (6-8) 6-2 in three and a half hours.

The 27-year-old will next play France’s world number 72 Jeremy Chardy.

Chardy progressed when Spain’s Nicolas Almagro pulled out with a calf injury four games into their match.

Almagro, 31, then rebuffed suggestions he had only turned up to claim the $50,000 (£31,000) that comes with a first-round exit.

He said: “I have more than $10m. I’m not going to play for $50,000. It is not the reason.”

Murray battles into second round

Tenth seed Tomas Berdych, twice a semi-finalist in Melbourne, also had a comfortable passage as his Italian opponent Luca Vanni retired after losing the opening set 6-1.

Seventh seed Marin Cilic fought back from two sets down to beat world number 278 Jerzy Janowicz 4-6 4-6 6-2 6-2 6-3 in three hours.

More to follow.

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Big Four Back Together Again In Melbourne

Posted: Jan 16, 2017

Big Four Back Together Again In Melbourne

Jan162017

An executive summary of what every fan should know about the coming weeks on the ATP World Tour

Big Four Back Together: The Big Four of Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have accounted for 42 of the past 47 Grand Slam tournaments since Roland Garros in 2005 when Nadal won his first of 14 Grand Slam titles. During the current stretch, Nadal has won 14 titles, Federer 13, Djokovic 12 and Murray 3.

The three other players to win a Grand Slam title during the span are Stan Wawrinka, a three-time champion (2014 Australian Open, 2015 Roland Garros, 2016 US Open), Marin Cilic (2014 US Open) and Juan Martin del Potro (2009 US Open).

The Big Four have won past 11 of the past 13 titles in Melbourne since Federer won his first title in 2004. Djokovic leads the way with six titles followed by Federer (four) and Nadal (one). The trio, along with Wawrinka, are the former Australian Open champions in the draw.

Last season, the Big Four played in only three tournaments together. Here is a look at their results:

Player	Australian Open	Monte-Carlo	Rome
Murray	Finalist	SF	Champion
Djokovic	Champion	2R (Bye)	Finalist
Nadal	1R	Champion	QF
Federer	SF	QF	3R

Murray Eyes First Title: World No. 1 Andy Murray is the top seed in a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in his career. Murray is the first British man to hold the top seed in a Slam since Bunny Austin at the 1939 Wimbledon.

Murray is making his 12^th straight appearance in Melbourne and he’s hoping to duplicate the feat of two of his rivals. Last season Djokovic won his first Roland Garros crown and Wawrinka his first US Open title, both in their 12^th tournament appearance.

Murray is trying to capture his first title after reaching the final five times (2010-11, 2013, 2015-16). He is 0-5 vs. Djokovic in Melbourne with his last four runner-up results coming to the Serbian. Murray has reached the final in a career-best six consecutive tournaments going back to last season and his 28-match winning streak came to an end with his final loss to Djokovic in Doha on 7 January.

You May Also Like: Djokovic Ready For 'Huge Challenge' In Melbourne Opener

Novak Eyes Record: Two-time reigning champion (six overall) Novak Djokovic is trying to become the all-time leader with the most Australian Open singles titles. He is currently tied with Aussie great Roy Emerson with six titles. Djokovic is the No. 2 seed for the first time in a Grand Slam tournament since the 2014 Roland Garros.

Djokovic has won the title in five of the past six years (39-1 record) with his only loss coming to Wawrinka in the quarter-finals in 2014. Overall he has a 57-6 career record in Melbourne. The 29-year-old Serbian, who won titles in 2008, 2011-13, 2015-16, is one of three players to win at least three titles in a row at the Australian Open along with Aussies Jack Crawford (1931-33) and Emerson (1963-67). Djokovic opened the season by repeating his title in Doha (d. Murray).

Roger Returns: Federer is making his 18^th straight appearance at the Australian Open and he opens against qualifier Jurgen Melzer. The four-time Australian Open champion has an 80-13 match record. The Swiss superstar will be playing his first tour-level match since 8 July 2016 when he lost in five sets in the semi-finals to Milos Raonic at Wimbledon. He missed the rest of last season with a knee injury.

It is also Federer’s first appearance outside the Top 10 in Melbourne since 2002 when he was ranked No. 12 and his No. 17 seeding is his lowest in a Grand Slam since he came in unseeded at 2001 Roland Garros. Federer finished last season with a 21-7 match record and No. 16 ranking.

His streak of 14 consecutive years in the year-end Top 10 ended, which is second only to Jimmy Connors’ 16. Federer’s best result was a runner-up in Brisbane (l. to Raonic) in the opening week of the season.

His streak of 15 straight years with at least one ATP World Tour title also came to an end. Prior to Federer’s knee injury, he was still playing at a high level as indicated in the Infosys ATP Scores & Stats. He would have been in the Top 5 in the following categories if he had played enough matches to qualify:

First Serve Points Won 80%

Second Serve Points Won 56%

Service Games Won 90%

Career Double Slam: Nadal is trying to become the third player in men’s tennis history to win each Grand Slam singles title twice in his career. The 2009 Australian Open champ is a nine-time Roland Garros champion and two-time winner at Wimbledon and US Open.

Aussies Rod Laver and Roy Emerson are the other players to accomplish the feat. Laver won a calendar Grand Slam in 1962 and ’69 while Emerson earned six Melbourne titles and two each at Roland Garros, Wimbledon and US Open.

Nadal is the No. 9 seed, his lowest seed in a Grand Slam tournament since he was No. 10 at 2015 Wimbledon. It is Nadal’s lowest Australian Open seeding since he was unseeded in 2005. Nadal has a 45-10 record in Melbourne, reaching the quarter-finals or better in eight of the previous 11 visits. Last year he lost in the first round for the first time to countryman Fernando Verdasco in five sets.

All-Time Grand Slam Champions: Here are the all-time Grand Slam titles leaders:

W-L

1) Roger Federer 17-10

2) Pete Sampras 14-4

2) Rafael Nadal 14-6

4) Novak Djokovic 12-9

4) Roy Emerson 12-3

6) Bjorn Borg, Rod Laver 11-5 & 11-6

Grand Slam Champions: Six of the seven active Grand Slam champions (except del Potro) are in the main draw, led by six-time Australian Open champion Djokovic and four-time winner Federer. The six players have combined to win 50 Grand Slam singles titles:

Player	Age	No.	Grand Slam Titles
Roger Federer	35	17	2003-07, ’09, ’12 Wimbledon; 2004, ’06-07, ’10 Australian Open; 2004-08 US Open; 2009 Roland Garros
Rafael Nadal	30	14	2005-08, ’10-14 Roland Garros; 2008, ’10 Wimbledon; ’09 Australian Open; ’10, ’13 US Open
Novak Djokovic	29	12	2008, ’11-’12-’13, ’15-16 Australian Open; 2011, ’14-15 Wimbledon; 2011, ’15 US Open; 2016 Roland Garros
Andy Murray	29	3	2012 US Open; 2013, ’16 Wimbledon
Stan Wawrinka	31	3	2014 Australian Open, 2015 Roland Garros, 2016 US Open
Marin Cilic	28	1	2014 US Open

Final Breakthrough: There are six players in the main draw who have reached a Grand Slam final and are still looking to win a Slam title, including No. 3 Milos Raonic, who reached the 2016 Wimbledon final. Here’s a look at the players who have reached a Grand Slam final and are still in pursuit of a Grand Slam title:

Player Grand Slam Tournament Final

No. 3 Milos Raonic 2016 Wimbledon (l. to Murray)

No. 5 Kei Nishikori 2014 US Open (l. to Cilic)

No. 10 Tomas Berdych 2010 Wimbledon (l. to Nadal)

No. 12 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 2008 Australian Open (l. to Djokovic)

No. 23 David Ferrer 2013 Roland Garros (l. to Nadal)

No. 36 Marcos Baghdatis 2006 Australian Open (l. to Federer)

Lopez Iron Man: Feliciano Lopez is appearing in his 60^th consecutive Grand Slam tournament in singles. The 35-year-old Spaniard joins Federer as the only players to compete in 60 or more consecutive Grand Slam singles events. Federer’s record of 65 in a row ended when he withdrew from Roland Garros last year.

Rank	Player	Consecutive Grand Slam Events Played
1. 2.	Roger Federer Feliciano Lopez	65 (2000 Aus Open-2016 Aus Open) 60* (2002 Roland Garros-2017 Aus Open)
3. 4.	Wayne Ferreira Fernando Verdasco	56 (1991 Aus Open-2004 US Open) 55* (2003 Wimbledon-2017 Aus Open)
5. 6. 7. 8.	Stefan Edberg Tomas Berdych David Ferrer Novak Djokovic	54 (1983 Wimbledon-1996 US Open) 52 (2003 US Open-2016 Wimbledon) 50 (2003 Aus Open-2015 Roland Garros) 49* (2005 Aus Open-2017 Aus Open)
	Guillermo Garcia-Lopez	49* (2005 Aus Open-2017 Aus Open)
10.	Stan Wawrinka	48* (2005 Roland Garros-2017 Aus Open)

Players in main draw in bold, *denotes a streak which is active through 2017 Australian Open

Grand Slam Match Wins Leaders: Federer is the all-time match wins leader (307) in Grand Slam history while Djokovic is No. 3 with 228 wins, Nadal tied for No. 7 (w/Sampras) with 203 wins, and Murray No. 10 with 176 wins. Here are the Top 10 Grand Slam match wins leaders (active players in bold):

W-L Titles

1) Roger Federer 307-51 17

2) Jimmy Connors 233-49 8

3) Novak Djokovic 228-36 12

4) Andre Agassi 224-53 8

5) Ivan Lendl 222-49 8

6) Roy Emerson 210-48 12

7) Rafael Nadal 203-31 14

Pete Sampras 203-38 14

9) Stefan Edberg 178-47 6

10) Andy Murray 176-40 3

Kyrgios, Tomic Lead Aussie Hopes: Mark Edmondson is the last Aussie to win the singles title on home soil in 1976 (d. Newcombe). Aussie No. 1 Nick Kyrgios, who reached the quarter-finals two years ago (l. to Murray), leads local title hopes. Kyrgios, who won a career-best three ATP World Tour titles last season, is one of 11 Aussies in the main draw. No. 2 Aussie Bernard Tomic, who is seeded No. 27, is making his ninth straight appearance (15-8 record). His best result is the fourth round in 2012, 2015-16. Wild card Alex De Minaur, 17, the youngest player in the draw, is making his debut.

Brothers In Draw: There are two sets of brothers in the singles main draw for the second straight Grand Slam tournament. Alexander and Mischa Zverev along with Gerald and Jurgen Melzer are in the draw. At last year’s US Open, the Zverevs were joined by Christian and Ryan Harrison. Last week Mischa Zverev improved to No. 50 and it marked the first time a brothers duo ranked in the Top 50 in the same week since 8 May 2006, with Olivier Rochus at No. 29 and brother Christophe No. 42.

Haas is Back: Former World No. 2 Tommy Haas is playing in his first tournament since October 2015 in Vienna. He’s the oldest player in the singles draw, less than three months away from his 39^th birthday on 3 April. Haas, who is the tournament director at the BNP Paribas Masters in Indian Wells, has a protected ranking of No. 25. Haas has a 26-13 career record at the Australian Open with his best results the semi-finals in 2002 and 2007. His last visit in Melbourne was in 2014.

Radek Going Strong: Radek Stepanek qualified into the main draw. The 38-year-old Czech Republic native is the oldest Grand Slam qualifier since Aussie Mal Anderson (42) at the Australian Open in December 1977. Stepanek is the third-oldest Grand Slam qualifier in the Open Era, behind Anderson and Neale Fraser (40), who qualified at Wimbledon in 1974.

Sascha Leads #NextGenATP Stars: No. 24 seed Alexander Zverev is the youngest player in the Top 50 of the Emirates ATP Rankings. Last season the 19-year-old German became the first teenager to finish in the Top 25 (at No. 24) since Novak Djokovic (No. 16) and Andy Murray (No. 17) in 2006. He reached a career-high No. 20 on 17 October after winning his maiden ATP World Tour title in St. Petersburg. He was the first teenager to win an ATP title since Marin Cilic (19) at 2008 New Haven.

#NextGenATP Stars Shine: There are 15 #NextGen ATP players in the main draw. Here is a look at the young stars (listed in Emirates ATP Rankings order):

Rank Age

No. 24 Alexander Zverev, GER 19

No. 52 Karen Khachanov, RUS 20

No. 59 Borna Coric, CRO 20

No. 63 Daniil Medvedev, RUS 20

No. 93 Taylor Fritz, USA 19

No. 101 Jared Donaldson, USA 20

No. 105 Hyeon Chung, KOR 20

No. 108 Frances Tiafoe, USA (Q) 18

No. 131 Ernesto Escobedo, USA (Q) 20

No. 152 Andrey Rublev, RUS (Q) 19

No. 155 Quentin Halys, FRA (WC) 20

No. 190 Michael Mmoh, USA (WC) 19

No. 200 Noah Rubin, USA (Q) 20

No. 207 Alexander Bublik, KAZ + (Q) 19

No. 208 Reilly Opelka, USA + (Q) 19

+ Will break Top 200 after Australian Open

U.S. Leads Country Count: There are a tournament-high 14 Americans in the main draw, led by No. 19 John Isner and No. 20 Jack Sock, who broke the Top 20 for the first time after his title in Auckland. Five Americans qualified into the main draw, the most since 2007. Half of the Americans in the draw are 20 or younger and part of the #NextGenATP group:

No. 93 Taylor Fritz, USA 19

No. 101 Jared Donaldson, USA 20

No. 108 Frances Tiafoe, USA 18

No. 131 Ernesto Escobedo, USA 20

No. 190 Michael Mmoh, USA 19

No. 200 Noah Rubin, USA 20

No. 208 Reilly Opelka, USA + 19

+ Will break Top 200 after Australian Open

Note: The last Grand Slam tournament seven Americans (20 or younger) were in the main draw was the 2006 US Open.

Doubles Draw: The reigning champions are Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares, last year’s No. 1 team in the Emirates ATP Doubles Team Rankings. Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan, who have finished No. 1 for 10 of the past 14 years, are six-time Australian Open champions. Their six titles are the second-most as a team in tournament history behind Bromwich-Quist (eight).

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Potential Match Wins Milestones

David Ferrer – 694

Philipp Kohlschreiber – 394

Fabio Fognini – 246

Gilles Muller – 196

Denis Istomin – 194

Rankings Movers

Dudi Sela 67 (+20)

Daniel Evans 51 (+16) – career high

Joao Sousa 37 (+7)

Gilles Muller 28 (+6) career high

Steve Johnson 30 (+3)

Jack Sock 20 (+3) – career high

Daniil Medvedev 63 (+2) – career high

Nick Kyrgios 13 (+1) – ties career high

Birthdays

17 January – Albert Ramos-Vinolas (29)

19 January – Horia Tecau (32)

20 January – Frances Tiafoe (19)

20 January – Malek Jaziri (33)

20 January – Robert Farah (30)

21 January – Nicolas Mahut (35)

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One Day To Go Until 2017 Australian Open

Posted: Jan 16, 2017

One Day To Go Until 2017 Australian Open

Jan152017

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Australian Open 2017: Johanna Konta 'happy' before Kirsten Flipkens challenge

Posted: Jan 15, 2017

British number one Johanna Konta is “happy” with her early-season form before her Australian Open first-round match against Kirsten Flipkens.

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Australian Open: Andy Murray among those in action on day one in Melbourne

Posted: Jan 15, 2017

Australian Open 2017
Venue: Melbourne Park, Melbourne. Dates: 16-29 Jan
Coverage: Live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra plus TV highlights on BBC Two from 21 Jan; live text on selected matches on BBC Sport website. Play begins at 00:00 GMT

World number one Andy Murray begins his Australian Open campaign on Monday with a match against world number 95 Illya Marchenko of Ukraine.

Defending women’s champion Angelique Kerber and four-time men’s winner Roger Federer are also in action on day one of the tournament in Melbourne.

British number two Dan Evans, beaten in his first ATP Tour final on Saturday, plays Facundo Bagnis of Argentina.

Britain’s Aljaz Bedene faces Victor Estrella Burgos of Dominican Republic.

Full Australian Open day one schedule
Tournament draw

Murray, who won last year’s Wimbledon and Olympic Games on his way to becoming world number one, has lost in five Australian Open finals, including in 2016 when he was beaten by Novak Djokovic.

“I obviously feel pretty confident after the way the last season finished,” said Murray. “I love it here. I love the conditions and have played really well over the years. I just haven’t managed to get over the final hurdle.

“I’m in a decent position to do it. I have a chance to win.”

Serb Djokovic begins his 2017 campaign on Tuesday versus Fernando Verdasco of Spain, while America’s Serena Williams, aiming to win a record-breaking seventh women’s singles title faces Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic.

A number of British players also have to wait until Tuesday for their first-round matches.

Britain’s women’s number one Johanna Konta, seeded ninth, is first up on Margaret Court Arena at 00:00 GMT where she faces Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium while unseeded Heather Watson will take on Australia’s 18th seed Samantha Stosur.

Naomi Broady is also in action on Tuesday against Australia’s Daria Gavrilova, the 22nd seed, with Kyle Edmund involved in men’s singles action against Santiago Giraldo of Colombia.

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