[andrewbroad]

AEGON CLASSIC (Edgbaston, Birmingham, England; grass; WTA International)
Contents

I don’t have time to finish my full point-by-point reports or post my photos until after Wimbledon, so for now, here’s a brief summary of each Daniela match for which a full report is forthcoming:

1. Wednesday 13th: Second round: Czink v Hantuchová
2. Thursday 14th: Doubles: Kops-Jones/Spears v Hantuchová/Lisicki


1. Second round: Czink v Hantuchová (Wednesday 13th June 2012)

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] lt. Melina Czink, 5-7 6-7 (5/7)

This match was a farce. Originally scheduled sixth on Centre Court, it was moved to Court 4 after a rain-delay caused the prior match to start late. I decided to stay on Centre Court watching Sabine Lisicki open the defence of her title against Urszula Radwańska. When Sabine had finished losing, I went straight to Court 4 to find Daniela just starting the second set. I couldn’t get a seat due to the large crowd, so I had to watch what remained of the match leaning over a wall.

Daniela was playing her first match since Fed Cup in April, in which she aggravated a stress-fracture in her left foot. She led 5-3* in the second set, but after some good play by Czink, Daniela double-faulted to make it 5-5*, and a series of errors in the tiebreak sealed her fate.


2. Doubles: First round: Kops-Jones/Spears v Hantuchová/Lisicki (Thursday 14th June 2012)

- Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Sabine Lisicki [EF] lt. RAQUEL KOPS-JONES/ABIGAIL SPEARS, 0-6 3-6

How fitting that the only two members of my Eternal Fanship at Birmingham 2012 should have teamed up in the doubles! I had a wonderful time watching them hitting together on the near practice-court earlier in the day.

Sabine had struggled with illness in her singles-loss the day before, but on Thursday she looked much healthier and happier; she was even smiling when she was serving at 0-6 *0-1; she looked very pleased when she won that game.

The outside courts were in a dreadful state after the rain earlier in the week. They were more like sandpits than grass-courts; I could actually see sand flying off the ball. It was also very windy; every strong gust would blow a big cloud of sand across the courts.

Daniela and Sabine were playing doubles together for only the second time, and were beaten by an established team who simply played better together than my girls did, with a lot of winning volleys and smashes.

Later in the day, I saw Daniela practising with a couple of coaches. I was impressed by her dedication: I found her practising within an hour of her doubles-loss, and she didn’t leave for 55 minutes, the last few of which she spent serving in the rain after all the other players had left.

--
Dr. Andrew Broad

 

[matty]

Re: Birmingham 2012: Andrew's eyewitness reports & photos (summary-reports)

where are th photos--in the photos thread?

 

[andrewbroad]

where are th photos--in the photos thread?

No – I'll post them in this thread over the next three months or so, after Wimbledon.

 

[Jamesson82]

Re: Birmingham 2012: Andrew's eyewitness reports & photos (summary-reports)

Thanks a lot for your great work with the reports and photos of Daniela which you provide!
Is there a new Photos thread for Daniela that I may have missed or didn't you have the time to post the pictures?

 

[andrewbroad]

Sorry: I've been extremely busy in recent months, and haven't got round to processing Birmingham 2012 yet.

 

[Jamesson82]

Re: Birmingham 2012: Andrew's eyewitness reports & photos (summary-reports)

No problem! Thanks a lot for your great work!

 

[andrewbroad]

Andrew's photos for Tuesday

AEGON CLASSIC (Edgbaston, Birmingham, England; grass; WTA International)
Photos (Tuesday 12th June 2012)

Permission to copy my Birmingham photos is granted provided that:
(a) no money is exchanged;
(b) they are labelled as “Copyright Andrew Broad 2012”.
Please let me know if you do use them on another website.

Since I don’t have time to upload hundreds of photos a day individually, I have uploaded each batch of photos as a large zip-file (approximately as many megabytes as photos).

Tuesday’s photos are in five volumes, with Daniela’s practice-session in Part 3 only. If you’re interested in other players, you might like to visit my Birmingham 2012 master-thread.


Tuesday Part 3 (Photos 218 to 378)

Download Part 3

Daniela Hantuchová (29 photos)
Sabine Lisicki (70)
Urszula Radwańska (17)
Heather Watson (15)
Chang,Kai-Chen (12)
Christina McHale (11)
Stéphanie Dubois (10)
Mona Barthel (9)
Zhèng,Jié (8)
Roberta Vinci (7)
Noppawan Lertcheewakarn (6)
Ekaterina Makarova (5)
Samantha Murray (5)
Alison Riske (4)
Misaki Doi (4)
Vera Dushevina (2)
Irina Falconi (2)

--
Dr. Andrew Broad

 

[andrewbroad]

Second-round eyewitness report & photos

AEGON CLASSIC (Edgbaston, Birmingham, England; grass; WTA International)
Contents

1. Photos
2. Second-round eyewitness report: Czink v Hantuchová


1. Photos (Wednesday 13th June 2012)

Permission to copy my Birmingham photos is granted provided that:
(a) no money is exchanged;
(b) they are labelled as “Copyright Andrew Broad 2012”.
Please let me know if you do use them on another website.

Since I don’t have time to upload hundreds of photos a day individually, I have uploaded each batch of photos as a large zip-file (approximately as many megabytes as photos).

Wednesday’s photos are in five volumes, with Daniela in Parts 1, 2 and 5. If you’re interested in other players, you might like to visit my Birmingham 2012 master-thread.


Wednesday Part 1 (Photos 001 to 094)

Download Part 1

Daniela Hantuchová posters (3 photos)
Elena Vesnina (26)
Laura Robson (17)
Christina McHale (16)
Ekaterina Makarova (9)
Marina Eraković (8)
Sesil Karatantcheva (7)
Klaudia Jans-Ignacik (4)
Alicja Rosolska (4)
Misaki Doi (3)
Sabine Lisicki posters (2)
Anastasia Rodionova (2)
Kaia Kanepi poster (1)

Part 1 consists of various players practising on Wednesday morning, and some posters by the entrance to the grounds.


Wednesday Part 2 (Photos 095 to 216)

Download Part 2

Daniela Hantuchová (30 photos)
Sania Mirza (31)
Iveta Benešová (29)
Yaroslava Shvedova (20)
Bojana Jovanovski (8)
Urszula Radwańska (6)
Alla Kudryavtseva (6)
Elena Vesnina (4)
Christina McHale (2)
Alexandra Cadanţu (1)

Part 2 covers the Mirza/Shvedova v Benešová/Kudryavtseva doubles match, and an early-afternoon practice session featuring Daniela and others.


Wednesday Part 5 (Photos 391 to 444)

Download Part 5

Daniela Hantuchová (45 photos)
Melinda Czink (14)
Hsieh,Su-Wei (1)
Alexandra Panova (1)

Part 5 covers Daniela’s match (and the Hsieh v Panova handshake).


2. Second-round eyewitness report: Czink v Hantuchová (Wednesday 13th June 2012)

- DANIELA HANTUCHOVÁ [3,EF] lt. Melinda Czink, 5-7 6-7 (5/7)

This match was a farce. Originally scheduled sixth on Centre Court, it was moved to Court 4 after a rain-delay caused the prior match to start late. It was cold and dark, with a hint of rain.

I’m sorry, but when I heard that Daniela had been moved to Court 4, I decided to stay on Centre Court watching Sabine Lisicki open the defence of her title against Urszula Radwańska. When Sabine had finished losing, I went straight to Court 4 to find Daniela just starting the second set. I couldn’t get a seat due to the large crowd, so I had to watch what remained of the match leaning over a wall.

Daniela was playing her first match since Fed Cup in April, in which she aggravated a stress-fracture in her left foot. She led 5-3* in both sets. In the first set, she squandered five set-points. In the second set, Czink played well from *3-5, but Daniela double-faulted to make it 5-5*, and a series of errors in the tiebreak sealed her fate.


First set
CZINK *_*_*___*@*@ 7
HANTU _*_*_*@*____ 5

The match started at 19:27 BST.

Czink serving 0-0: 15/0. 15/15. 30/15. 40/15 (GP #1). Second serve... 40/30 (GP #2). Held.

Hantuchová serving 0-1: 15/0. 30/0. 40/0 (GP #1). 40/15 (GP #2). Held.

Czink serving 1-1: 15/0. 30/0. 40/0 (GP #1). Held.

Hantuchová serving 1-2: 15/0. 30/0. 40/0 (GP #1). Held.

Czink serving 2-2: 0/15. 0/30. 15/30. Second serve... 30/30. 40/30 (GP #1). Held.

Hantuchová serving 2-3: 15/0. 30/0. 40/0 (GP #1). 40/15 (GP #2). Second serve... Held.

Czink serving 3-3: 0/15. 0/30. 15/30. 15/40 (BP #1). 30/40 (BP #2). Broken.

Hantuchová serving 4-3 (new balls): 15/0. 30/0. 30/15. 40/15 (GP #1). 40/30 (GP #2). Deuce #1. Ad Hantuchová (GP #3). Held.

Czink serving 3-5: 15/0. 15/15. 15/30. 15/40 (SP #1 for Hantuchová). 30/40 (SP #2 for Hantuchová). Deuce #1. Ad Czink (GP #1). Second serve... Deuce #2. Ad Hantuchová (SP #3). Deuce #3. Ad Hantuchová (SP #4). Deuce #4. Ad Czink (GP #2). Held.

Hantuchová serving 5-4: 0/15. 0/30. 15/30. 30/30. 40/30 (SP #5 for Hantuchová). Deuce #1. Ad Czink (BP #1). Broken.

Czink serving 5-5: 15/0. 30/0. 40/0 (GP #1). 40/15 (GP #2). Held.

Hantuchová serving 5-6: 0/15. 0/30. Second serve... 0/40 (SP #1 for Czink). Czink won the first set 7-5 at 20:11 BST (44m).


Second set
CZINK *___*_*_*@*_T 7(7)
HANTU _*@*_*_*___*_ 6(5)

Czink serving 0-0: I joined the match at 15/0. Czink netted a backhand. 15/15. Service-winner. 30/15. Daniela hit a forehand wide. 40/15 (GP #1). Ace #5. Held.

Hantuchová serving 0-1: Ace #2: first serve out wide. 15/0. Daniela hit a crosscourt forehand winner. 30/0. Double fault #1 (second serve long). 30/15. Daniela hit a forehand long. 30/30. First serve: Czink netted a forehand return. 40/30 (GP #1). First serve out wide: Czink netted a forehand return. Held.

Czink serving 1-1: On the third stroke, Czink hit a backhand long. 0/15. Daniela hit a backhand return long. 15/15. First serve out wide: crosscourt forehand return wide. 30/15. Czink forehand long. 30/30. Ace #6: first serve out wide. 40/30 (GP #1). Second serve out wide: Daniela hit a down-the-line backhand return-winner. Deuce #1. On the third stroke, Czink netted a forehand. Ad Hantuchová (BP #1). Double fault #2 (second serve just long). Broken.

Hantuchová serving 2-1: Second serve... on the third stroke, Daniela hit a backhand long. 0/15. Czink’s deep return forced Daniela to hit a backhand long. 0/30. Daniela hit an off-forehand winner. 15/30. Daniela’s deep crosscourt forehand forced Czink to net a backhand. 30/30. First serve out wide: forehand return long. 40/30 (GP #1). Czink hit a crosscourt forehand wide. Held.

Czink serving 1-3 (new balls): Daniela backhand long. 15/0. Deep second serve out wide induced Daniela to net a backhand return. 30/0. First serve out wide + crosscourt backhand winner. 40/0 (GP #1). Ace #7: second serve down the middle. Held.

Czink consulted her coach during the changeover.

Hantuchová serving 3-2: Second serve... Daniela hit a backhand just long (Czink jumped to avoid it). 0/15. On the third stroke, Daniela netted a forehand. 0/30. Czink’s deep backhand down the middle induced Daniela to mishit a crosscourt backhand wide. 0/40 (BP #1). Daniela hit an off-backhand winner. 15/40 (BP #2). Czink crosscourt backhand wide. 30/40 (BP #3). Czink mishit a crosscourt backhand wide. Deuce #1. Czink’s depth induced Daniela to hit a backhand long. Ad Czink (BP #4). Deep first serve forced Czink to hit a forehand return long. Deuce #2. Backhand return just long. Ad Hantuchová (GP #1). My notes say, “Czink backhand long,” but that can’t be right. Deuce #3. First serve out wide: Czink hit a down-the-line backhand return-winner. Ad Czink (BP #5). Daniela hit an off-backhand winner onto the baseline. Deuce #4. On the fourth stroke, Czink netted a backhand. Ad Hantuchová (GP #2). First serve forced a short return; Daniela hit an off-forehand winner. Held.

Czink serving 2-4: Czink hit a backhand winner down Daniela’s backhand sideline. 15/0. First serve out wide: backhand lob-return long. 30/0. Daniela’s deep crosscourt backhand forced Czink to net a forehand. 30/15. Daniela spread Czink with a crosscourt forehand + down-the-line forehand winner. 30/30. Double fault #3 (second serve just long). 30/40 (BP #1). Ace #8: first serve down the middle. Deuce #1. Czink’s depth induced Daniela to hit a forehand long on the fourth stroke. Ad Czink (GP #1). Daniela hit a backhand long. Held.

Hantuchová serving 4-3: Second serve down the middle: Czink netted a backhand return. 15/0. Czink hit a deep return onto the baseline, forcing Daniela to hit a skyscraper-lob that landed just inside the baseline, but Czink dumped a forehand smash into the net. 30/0. First serve out wide: Czink netted a backhand return. 40/0 (GP #1). Czink hit a backhand just long. Held.

Czink serving 3-5: First serve down the middle forced Daniela to net a backhand return. 15/0. First serve out wide forced Daniela to earth a backhand return. 30/0. Czink’s deep crosscourt forehand forced Daniela to net a sliced backhand. 40/0 (GP #1). Daniela hit an off-forehand winner. 40/15 (GP #2). Second serve down the middle: Daniela netted a backhand return. Held.

Hantuchová serving 5-4: Czink’s deep crosscourt backhand return forced Daniela to net a forehand. 0/15. Slow first serve out wide: Czink hit a crosscourt forehand return-winner. 0/30. Czink backhand long. 15/30. Czink’s depth induced Daniela to net a forehand. 15/40 (BP #1). Ace #3: first serve down the middle. 30/40 (BP #2). Double fault #2 (second serve long). Broken.

Czink serving 5-5: Deep first serve down the middle forced Daniela to hit a backhand return long. 15/0. Ace #9: short-angled first serve out wide, just inside the sideline. 30/0. Czink hit an off-forehand winner. 40/0 (GP #1). Ace #10: first serve down the middle clipped the centre-line with a puff of titanium pigment. Held.

Hantuchová serving 5-6: Backhand return long. 15/0. A deep, low ball from Czink forced Daniela to net a forehand. 15/15. Daniela hit a crosscourt forehand winner. 30/15. Daniela hit another crosscourt forehand winner. 40/15 (GP #1). Ace #4: first serve out wide. Held.

6-6 tiebreak (all scores Czink/Hantuchová):
{*0/0} Double fault #4 (second serve long).
{0/1*} Czink hit a crosscourt backhand winner.
{1/1*} Czink hit a forehand winner down Daniela’s backhand sideline.
{*2/1} Double fault #5 (second serve into the net).
{*2/2} Daniela’s deep backhand return forced Czink to hit a crosscourt backhand wide.
{2/3*} After a long rally, Czink’s deep backhand forced Daniela to net a backhand.
{3/3*} Deep first serve down the middle forced Czink to net a forehand return.
{*3/4} First serve out wide: Daniela hit a backhand return long.
{*4/4} Czink’s backhand drive-volley forced Daniela to hit a crosscourt forehand wide.
{5/4*} Daniela sprayed a wild forehand long.
{6/4*: MP #1 for Czink} First serve down the middle: Czink earthed a backhand return.
{*6/5: MP #2 for Czink} Deep first serve down the middle forced Daniela to net a backhand return. Czink won 7-5 7-6 (7/5) at 21:03 BST (second set 52m, match 1h36m).

--
Dr. Andrew Broad

 

[Jamesson82]

Re: Birmingham 2012: Andrew's eyewitness reports & photos (+Wednesday 13th June 2012)

Thanks. Your pictures of Dani in spandex are amazing. Easily the best candid pictures of her all over the web. Now all we need is a training with Dani and Masha this year at Birmingham

 

[andrewbroad]

Andrew's eyewitness reports & photos for Thursday

AEGON CLASSIC (Edgbaston, Birmingham, England; grass; WTA International)
Contents

1. Photos
2. Doubles: First-round eyewitness report: Kops-Jones/Spears v Hantuchová/Lisicki


1. Photos (Thursday 14th June 2012)

Permission to copy my Birmingham photos is granted provided that:
(a) no money is exchanged;
(b) they are labelled as “Copyright Andrew Broad 2012”.
Please let me know if you do use them on another website.

Since I don’t have time to upload hundreds of photos a day individually, I have uploaded each batch of photos as a large zip-file (approximately as many megabytes as photos).

Thursday’s photos are in five volumes, with Daniela in Parts 2, 4 and 5. If you’re interested in other players, you might like to visit my Birmingham 2012 master-thread.


Thursday Part 2 (Photos 050 to 191)

Download Part 2

Daniela Hantuchová (90 photos)
Sabine Lisicki (61)
Tamira Paszek (1)

Part 2 features Daniela and Sabine practising together.


Thursday Part 4 (Photos 241 to 378)

Download Part 4

Daniela Hantuchová (52 photos)
Urszula Radwańska (59)
Sabine Lisicki (49)
Irina Falconi (19)
Raquel Kops-Jones (4)
Abigail Spears (4)

Part 4 features the third-round match between Radwańska and Falconi, and the Hantuchová/Lisicki v Kops-Jones/Spears doubles-match [Section 2].


Thursday Part 5 (Photos 379 to 467)

Download Part 5

Daniela Hantuchová (52 photos)
Mona Barthel (21)
Sorana Cîrstea (14)
Alexandra Cadanţu (2)

Part 5 features Daniela practising with two coaches. I was impressed by her dedication: I found her practising within an hour of her doubles-loss, and she didn’t leave for 55 minutes, the last few of which she spent serving in the rain after all the other players had left.


2. Doubles: First-round eyewitness report: Kops-Jones/Spears v Hantuchová/Lisicki (Thursday 14th June 2012)

- Daniela Hantuchová [EF]/Sabine Lisicki [EF] lt. RAQUEL KOPS-JONES/ABIGAIL SPEARS [4], 0-6 3-6

How fitting that the only two members of my Eternal Fanship at Birmingham 2012 should have teamed up in the doubles! I had a wonderful time watching them hitting together on the near practice-court earlier in the day.

Sabine had struggled with breathing difficulties in her singles-loss the day before, but on Thursday she looked much healthier and happier; she was even smiling when she was serving at 0-6 *0-1; she looked very pleased when she won that game.

The outside courts were in a dreadful state after the rain earlier in the week. They were more like sandpits than grass-courts; I could actually see sand flying off the ball. It was also very windy; every strong gust would blow a big cloud of sand across the courts.

Daniela and Sabine were playing doubles together for only the second time, and were beaten by an established team who simply played better together than my girls did, with a lot of winning volleys and smashes.


First set
KOPS-J/SPEARS *@*@*@ 6
HANTUC/LISICK ______ 0

The match was fourth on Court 3. The Americans won the toss and elected to serve, and the match started at 15:14 BST.

I actually watched this match from the adjacent Court 2, where I was already following the Irina Falconi v Urszula Radwańska singles-match (I would have preferred to move to Court 3, but the crowd looked too dense). I decided to report on both matches simultaneously during the first set before giving this match my undivided attention in the second, so I apologise in advance for missing some points.

Sabine and Spears were receiving in the ad-court for their respective teams.

Kops-Jones serving 0-0: Service-winner. 15/0. Sabine hit a down-the-line backhand return-winner. 15/15. Sabine went to the net, but earthed a forehand volley off an awkward low ball at her feet. 30/15. Sabine hit a down-the-line backhand winner. 30/30. Sabine hit a forehand pass-volley winner. 30/40 (BP #1). Service-winner out wide. 40/40 (BP #2). Deciding point: receiver’s choice. Sabine netted a backhand return. Held.

Lisicki serving 0-1: Service-winner. 15/0. Kops-Jones hit a forehand smash-winner. 15/15. Daniela hit a crosscourt backhand wide. 15/30. Spears bisected Daniela and Sabine with a backhand winner down the middle. 15/40 (BP #1). 30/40 (BP #2). Ace #1: first serve out wide. 40/40 (BP #3). Spears hit a crosscourt backhand drop-volley winner. Broken.

Spears serving 2-0: Service-winner. 15/0. Sabine netted a forehand return. 30/0. Service-winner. 40/0 (GP #1). Kops-Jones hit an off-backhand volley-winner. Held.

Hantuchová serving 0-3: 15/0. Spears hit a forehand lob long. 30/0. Daniela forehand long. 30/15. Daniela off-backhand wide. 30/30. 30/40 (BP #1). Service-winner. 40/40 (BP #2). Daniela crosscourt backhand wide. Broken.

Kops-Jones serving 4-0: Daniela hit a down-the-line forehand return-winner. 0/15. Kops-Jones hit an error-forcing forehand smash. 15/15. Spears hit an off-forehand volley-winner. 30/15. Service-winner. 40/15 (GP #1). Daniela netted a forehand smash. Held.

Lisicki serving 0-5: Double fault #1 (second serve into the net). 0/15. 0/30. Spears hit a forehand lob long. 15/30. Sabine netted a backhand. 15/40 (SP #1 for Kops-Jones/Spears). Daniela’s backhand volley forced Kops-Jones to net a backhand. 30/40 (SP #2 for Kops-Jones/Spears). Kops-Jones hit a forehand smash-winner. Kops-Jones/Spears won the first set 6-0 at 15:33 BST (19m).


Second set
KOPS-J/SPEARS *[email protected]*_*@* 6
HANTUC/LISICK _*@__*___ 3

Spears serving 0-0: Double fault #1. 0/15. Kops-Jones hit an error-forcing forehand smash. 15/15. 30/15. Ace #1. 40/15 (GP #1). Kops-Jones hit an off-forehand winner. Held.

Lisicki serving 0-1 (new balls): Deep first serve forced Kops-Jones to hit a forehand return long. 15/0. American depth forced Sabine to hit a backhand lob long. 15/15. They removed one of the scoreboards, because the noise that it was making in the wind was distracting the players. Sabine bisected the Americans with a forehand winner down the middle. 30/15. Service-winner out wide. 40/15 (GP #1). Sabine netted a forehand on the third stroke. 40/30 (GP #2). Spears hit a backhand long, and Sabine looked very pleased! Held.

Kops-Jones serving 1-1: Daniela netted a backhand. 15/0. Daniela hit an off-backhand volley-winner. 15/15. Spears hit an off-forehand punch-volley winner. 30/15. Sabine hit an off-backhand return-winner. 30/30. Daniela hit a down-the-line forehand return-winner. 30/40 (BP #1). Sabine painted the sideline with an off-forehand pass-winner. Broken.

Hantuchová serving 2-1: Sabine netted a backhand first volley, and put her hand on her face. 0/15. First serve out wide + crosscourt forehand drive-volley winner. 15/15. Kops-Jones hit a forehand return long. 30/15. Spears hit a crosscourt backhand winner. 30/30. Daniela netted a backhand. 30/40 (BP #1). Daniela hit a backhand lob-winner. 40/40 (BP #2). Spears hit a forehand smash-winner down the middle. Broken.

Spears serving 2-2: Second serve... Spears netted a backhand volley. 0/15. Spears hit a crosscourt backhand winner. 15/15. American pace forced Sabine to hit a crosscourt backhand volley wide. 30/15. Sabine hit a forehand return long. 40/15 (GP #1). Spears netted a forehand smash. 40/30 (GP #2). Spears hit a forehand smash-winner. Held.

Lisicki serving 2-3: Double fault #2 (second serve into the net). 0/15. Deep first serve out wide forced Spears to net a forehand return. 15/15. Clouds of sand blew across the court. Service-winner. 30/15. Spears crosscourt backhand long. 30/30. Kops-Jones hit a forehand return long. 40/30 (GP #1). Sabine hit a crosscourt backhand wide. 40/40 (BP #1). Second serve... Sabine hit a crosscourt forehand drive-volley winner. Held.

Kops-Jones serving 3-3: Sabine backhand long. 15/0. Sabine netted a backhand return. 30/0. Spears hit a backhand volley long. 30/15. Spears hit another backhand volley long. 30/30. Spears dispatched a short European lob with a forehand smash-winner. 40/30 (GP #1). Spears hit a forehand volley-winner down the middle. Held.

Hantuchová serving 3-4: First serve out wide forced Kops-Jones to net a forehand return. 15/0. Kops-Jones hit a crosscourt forehand volley-winner. 15/15. Kops-Jones forehand long. 30/15. Sabine went to the net, but earthed a backhand volley off an awkward low ball at her feet. 30/30. There was a big gust of wind. Sabine netted a forehand volley. 30/40 (BP #1). Daniela netted a forehand on the third stroke. Broken.

Spears serving 5-3: First serve out wide forced Daniela to hit a forehand return long. 15/0. Sabine, stretched wide, hit a backhand return wide. 30/0. European depth forced Spears to hit a forehand long. 30/15. Spears hit an error-forcing forehand smash. 40/15 (MP #1 for Kops-Jones/Spears). Kops-Jones dispatched a short European lob with a forehand smash-winner. Kops-Jones/Spears won 6-0 6-3 at 16:11 BST (second set 38m, match 57m).

--
Dr. Andrew Broad