Ilkley Open: Yorkshire hopes over as Johannus Monday loses out with Naiktha Bains and Tara Moore
OLIVER CRAWFORD said that he is “loving Ilkley” after becoming the first British player into the men’s quarter-finals of the Ilkley Open.
Crawford, 26, who was born in the USA but flies the British flag thanks to his family connection to Sutton Coldfield, is making his best-ever grass court run at the Yorkshire tournament.
“I’m super happy to get through today. Especially against a very good opponent in Jenson (Brooksby) who is coming back after a bit of time off,” he said on his 6-4 7-5 win against the American former world No 33.
“It feels really good to get over the line against a high-quality player, especially as I’m trying to build my grass court resume.
“I felt my game could be good on grass, but I just haven’t spent enough time on it.
“It’s been a great week. It’s obviously great to play in front of a home crowd. I’m loving Ilkley and looking forward to the next match.”
Crawford will play Japan’s Shintaro Mochizuki – a former Wimbledon junior champion – who brought Hull man Johannus Monday’s run to an end.
Monday, ranked 243 in the world, rallied from a set and a break of serve down to win the second set in a tiebreak against 178-ranked Mochizuki.
However, after seeing break points go begging in the third set, Monday was beaten 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 3-6.
It was a similar story for Yorkshire pair Naiktha Bains (Leeds) and Tara Moore (Doncaster) who fell at the quarter-final stage of the women’s doubles.
After recovering from an early break down to win the second set 6-4, the home favourites were defeated in a match-deciding tie-break against Elsa Jacquemot of France and American Varvara Lepchenko, ending 4-6 6-4 6-10.
Canada’s Rebecca Marino, 34, continued her title defence after a three-set battle with her doubles partner – 25-year-old Brit Emily Appleton – winning 2-6 6-4 6-3.
There was possibly some hangover from their tough centre court clash, as the pair lost in straight sets in their women’s doubles quarter-final against the top-seeded all-British team of Harriet Dart and Maia Lumsden.
Top-seeded Alexandra Eala of the Philippines meets Marino in the quarter-final after the 20-year-old world number 77 stormed past Switzerland’s Valentina Ryser, 24, 6-1 6-2.
In the final match on centre court, 22-year-old wildcard Jack Pinnington Jones, ranked 340 in the world, came out on top in a battle of the Brits against 30-year-old Billy Harris, 7-6 (7-4) 4-6 6-3.
Elsewhere, Emma Raducanu booked her place in the quarter-finals at Queen’s with a 6-4 6-1 victory over Slovakian Rebecca Sramkova.
The 22-year-old will officially become British No 1 on Monday after Katie Boulter bowed out with a 2-6 6-3 6-2 second-round defeat to Russian fifth seed Diana Shnaider.
“I’m really pleased to get through that,” Raducanu said. “It wasn’t easy, I don’t think it was my cleanest performance, but I’m really happy to have pushed through in some tight moments that decided the first set.
“It was really helpful when it was coming back in the first set to have that roar of support to help me get through that last service game, so I appreciate that!”
Boulter, who replaced 2021 US Open winner Raducanu in top spot exactly two years ago, looked sharp in her first set, saving two break points, breaking the Russian’s serve twice, and hitting 10 winners.
But, after landing close to three quarters of her first serves in the first set, the issues that had plagued Boulter in her gritty victory over Australian qualifier Ajla Tomljanovic on Monday returned to haunt her in the second and third sets on an afternoon the Briton double-faulted nine times.
“I actually think today, the first set was some of the best grass court tennis I have played,” said Boulter.
Briton Heather Watson also bowed out in the last 16 after she was beaten 6-4 6-2 by former Wimbledon champion and fourth seed Elena Rybakina.