Brits Naomi Broady, Katie Boulter and Gabriella Taylor all won on day two at the Aegon Manchester Trophy and will join Katy Dunne to make up a quartet of Brits in the second round of the ITF Pro Circuit event at the The Northern, Didsbury.
Broady, from Heaton Moor in Stockport, pleased the crowd with an assured victory over India’s number-one ranked player, Ankita Raina.
The world-ranked number 123 eased past her opponent 6-3 6-4 but admitted to having felt the pressure of playing in front of friends and family:
“It’s always hard to play the first match, we always say it’s the hardest one of the tournament to get the first one under your belt and getting used to the courts,” she said.
“Obviously I’ve got a lot of family and friends watching me this week which I’m not really used to so it’s a bit of added pressure as well.”
Naomi Broady into last 16
Broady’s victory was just the beginning of what proved to be a good day for the British contingent with three players making it through to the last 16.
The 20-year-old Boulter progressed against Altrincham’s Samantha Murray 6-4 3-6 6-3 and feels optimistic about the tournament ahead: “The first match on grass, or win on grass is always difficult so I am happy to get through it and I am looking forward to what I can do.”
Taylor was victorious against Dutch world number 192 Lesley Kerkhove, winning 6–4 63.
She said: “I am pleased with how I played today, it was just enough.
“Obviously there are some things that I need to work on, which I have done, so yeah I am now just focussed on getting prepared for the next match.”
The action continues tomorrow from 11am with all four Brits in action.
What is the Aegon Trophy Series?
The Aegon Trophy Series comprises men’s and women’s events around the country which offer players the opportunity to compete on grass in the lead up to Wimbledon.
The Aegon Trophy Series now offers more prize-money at its events than any comparable circuit anywhere in the world.
Attracting some of the world’s most exciting players with $850,000 overall prize money, 2017 sees the Aegon Trophy Series increase to five grass tournaments across five different venues.