Early Round Losers Rewarded With Wimbledon Prize Increase

Wimbledon prize money will this year eclipse twenty-five million pounds for the first time followign this week's announcement that it would increase by 10.8 percent on last year's total.

Whilst both the men's and women's singles champions will receive 1.76 million pounds each, a 10 percent increase on last year, it is the early round losers who benefit the most this year.

All competitors to lose before the third round, including qualifying, will receive a prize money increase of 12.5 percent in order to try and increase financial aid for those who most require it in the tennis environment.

Wimbledon chairman Philip Brook said , "We've placed emphasis on the large group of players who need our help the most, those players who lose in qualifying and in the early rounds of the championships. We also had an eye to being competitive internationally, and we do keep our watch on what is going on in other tennis events and in particular the other Grand Slams."

This follows on from a sensational rise in recent years, with the prize money for the majority of singles players who lose in the opening three rounds rising over 100 percent over the last three years. This has a particular emphasis on first-round losers, each earning 27,000 pounds.

The rise in prize money on the lawns of Wimbledon coincides with a general Grand Slam prize money increase following players demands.

Tennis Brit Watch Week 18

ATP
Singles

Ostrava Challenger - Dan Evans (Withdrew 1st Round - Illness)

Tallahassee Challenger - James Ward (Lost Quarter-Final - Robby Ginepri 3-6 6-3 2-6)
                              - David Rice (Lost 1st Round - Antonio Veic (3)6-7 1-6)
                              - Sean Thornley (Lost 1st Qualifying Round - Andrew Carter 6-4 2-6 3-6)

An-Ning Challenger - Dan Cox (Lost 2nd Round - Nikola Mektic 3-6 4-6)
                            - Oliver Golding (Lost 1st Round - Borna Coric 2-6 3-6)


Seoul Futures - Edward Corrie (Lost Quarter-Final - Dane Propoggia 6-2 3-6 4-6)
                  - Richard Gabb (Lost 2nd Round - Marcus Daniell Retired)
                  - George Coupland (Lost 1st Round - Gengo Kikuchi 5-7 2-6)

Mostoles Futures - Josh Milton (Lost 2nd Round - Laurent Rochette 6-3 4-6 6-3)
                        - James Marsalek (Lost 1st Round - Jaime Pulgar-Garcia 1-6 6-2 6-4)
                        - Matthew Short (Lost 1st Round - Samuel Ribiero Navarrete 6-4 7-6)

Antalya Futures - Alex Jhun (Lost 1st Round - Peter Heller 3-6 2-6)

Edinburgh Futures - Toby Martin (Lost 2nd Round - Ashley Hewitt 2-6 6-3 2-6)
                        - Robert Carter (Lost 2nd Round - Liam Broady 6-3 1-6 1-6)
                        - Jonny O'Mara (Lost 1st Round - Jonny O'Mara 3-6 7-6 6-7)
                        - Marcus Willis (CHAMPION)
                        - Ashley Hewitt (Lost Semi-Final - Neil Pauffley 6-2 6-4)
                        - Brydan Klein (Lost Quarter Final - Neil Pauffley Walkover)
                        - Liam Broady (Lost Semi-Final - Marcus Willis 6-4 4-6 3-6)
                        - Neil Pauffley (RUNNER UP)
                        - Luke Bambridge (Lost 1st Round - Gavin Van Peperzeel 2-6 6-4 4-6)
                        - Adam Glynn (Lost 1st Round - Jathan Malik 4-6 3-6)
                        - Adam Thornton-Brown (Lost 1st Round - Matteo Marrai 2-6 3-6)
                        - Ryan Peniston (Lost 1st Round - Sander Gille 6-3 3-6 5-7)
                        - David Porter (Lost 1st Round - Toby Martin 0-6 3-6)
                        - Keelan Oakley (Lost 2nd Round - Marcus Willis 0-6 2-6)
                        - Tom Allen (Lost 1st Round - Keelan Oakley 3-6 3-6)
                        - Myles Orton (Lost 1st Round -  Marcus Willis 1-6 0-6)
                        - Imran Aswat (Lost 2nd Round - Neil Pauffley 3-6 3-6)
                        - Bruce Strachan (Lost 2nd Round - Gavin Van Peperzeel 2-6 4-6)

Vero Beach Futures - Alex Sendegeya (Lost 1st Round - Francis Tiafoe 3-6 3-6)
 

Doubles

Munich - Jamie Murray (partnering John Peers) (CHAMPIONS)
            - Colin Fleming and Ross Hutchins (RUNNERS-UP)

Taipei City Challenger - Jamie Delgado (partnering Gilles Muller) (Lost to Krajicek/Smith 4-6 6-7)

An-Ning Challenger - Oliver Golding (partnering Borna Coric) (Lost 1st Round - Grigelis/Mektic 3-6 (0)6-7)
                               - Dan Cox (partnering Mao-Xin Gong) (Runners-Up)

Tallahassee Challenger - Darren Walsh (partnering Adham el-Effendi) (Lost Semi-Final - Fratangelo/Krueger - 4-6 3-6)
                                     - David Rice and Sean Thornley (Lost 1st Round - Kokkinakis/Kubler 6-1 7-5)

Seoul Futures - Edward Corrie (partnering Maximilian Neuchrist) (Lost Quarter-Final - Chung/Nam 6-3 5-7 5-10)
                     - Richard Gabb (partnering Marcus Daniell) (Lost Quarter-Final - Nagau/Oku Walkover)

Sharm el Sheikh Futures - Jack Oswald (partnering Andrea Camurri) (Lost Quarter-Final Mauricio Alvarez-Guzman 0-6 1-6)

Edinburgh Futures - Luke Bambridge/Liam Broady (Lost Semi-Final - Van Peperzeel/Banes 7-6 6-1)

                              - Myles Orton (partnering Daniel Glancy (Lost Quarter-Final - Bambridge/Broady 4-6 4-6)
                              - Jonny O'Mara/Marcus Willis (CHAMPIONS)
                              - Brydan Klein (partnering Jake Eames) (Lost Quarter-Final - O'Mara/Willis 6-7 2-3 retired)
                              - Robert Carter/Ryan Peniston (Lost Quarter-Final - Griekspoor/Griekspoor 5-7 4-6)

Mostoles Futures - James Marsalek (partnering Juan Sebastian Gomez) (Lost Quarter-Final Pulgar-Garcia/Arauzo-Martinez 4-6 6-7)
                           - Matthew Short (partnering Jan Blecha) (Lost Pulgar-Garcia/Arauzo-Martinez 6-7 retired)

Antalya Futures - Alexander Jhun (partnering Yusuki Watanuki (Lost Quarter-Final Ramanathan/Ciumac 4-6 3-6)

Vero Beach Futures - Thomas Knights/James Turbervill (Lost 1st Round - Tucker/Vorster 4-6 7-6 3-10)


WTA
Singles

Gifu 75k - Naomi Broady (Lost 2nd Round - Misa Eguchi 7-6 6-7 4-6)
            - Samantha Murray (Lost 1st Round - Qiang Wang 2-6 6-7)
            - Tara Moore (Lost 1st Round - Tammi Patterson 4-6 4-6)
            - Jade Windley (Lost 1st Qualifying Round - Akiko Yonemura 6-7 6-4 2-6)
            - Emily Webley-Smith (Lost 1st Qualifying Round - Miki Miyamura 6-7 6-4 4-6)
            - Anna Smith (Lost 1st Qualifying Round -  Yuka Higuchi 2-6 2-6)

Wiesbaden 25k - Johanna Konta (Withdrew)

Sharm el Sheikh 10k - Katy Dunne (Lost Semi-Final - 6-7 4-6)
                           - Katie Boulter (RUNNER-UP)
                           - Danielle Konotoptseva (Lost 1st Round - Katy Dunne 2-6 0-6)
                           - Harriet Dart (Lost Quarter-Final - Katy Dunne 3-6 6-1 6-7)
                           - Eden Silva (Lost Quarter-Final - Katie Boulter 5-7 3-6)
                           - Francesca Stephenson (Lost 1st Round - Ola Abou Zekry 4-6 0-6)
                           - Sabrina Bamburac (Lost 2nd Round - Pia Konig 2-6 0-6)
                           - Dominique Covington (Lost Final Qualifying Round - Milica Novakovic 3-6 4-6)
                           - Savannah Sills (Lost Final Qualifying Round - Ola Abou Zekry 4-6 3-6)
                           - Aimee Gibson (Lost Final Qualifying Round - Nevena Selakovic 1-6 1-6)

Antalya 10k - Eleanor Dean (Lost Quarter-Final - Olga Doroshina 3-6 5-7)
                 - Mollie Crouch (Lost 1st Round - Oceane Dodin 1-6 4-6)

Doubles

Gifu 75k - Jade Windley/Samantha Murray (Lost 1st Round - Rika Fujikawa/Tamarine Tanasugarn 1-6 3-6)
              - Emily Webley-Smith (partnering Ekaterina Bychkova) (Lost 1st Round - Naomi Broady/Tara Moore 6-7 7-5 10-5)
              - Naomi Broady/Tara Moore (Lost Quarter-Final - Rodionova/Gajdosova 2-6 5-7)
              - Jocelyn Rae/Anna Smith (Lost Semi-Final - Hsieh/Doi 4-6 2-6)

Sharm el Sheikh 10k - Katie Boulter (partnering Nina Stojanovic) (CHAMPIONS)
                                 - Eden Silva (partnering Elena Van Der Sypt) (Lost Semi-Final - Boulter/Stojanovic 3-0 retirement)
                                 - Savannah Sills (partnering Tereza Melicharkova) (Lost Quarter-Final Dunne/Dart 2-6 0-6)
                                 - Dominique Covington/Aimee Gibson (Lost 1st Round - Harriet Dart/Katy Dunne 2-6 3-6)
                                 - Harriet Dart/Katy Dunne (Lost Semi-Final - Dong/Konig 3-6 1-6)
                                 - Sabrina Bamburac (partnering Nevena Selakovic) (Lost 1st Round - Dong/Konig 6-4 5-7 6-10)

Antalya 10k - Eleanor Dean (partnering Saray Sterenbach) (Lost Semi-Final - Lee/Fomina 3-6 1-6)
                   - Mollie Crouch (partnering Mariana Mayer Humberg) (Lost 1st Round - Dean/Sterenbach 2-6 1-6)

Sunday 4th May
Katie Boulter lost to Nina Stojanovic 6-3 4-6 3-6 (Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Jamie Murray/John Peers beat Colin Fleming/Ross Hutchins (Final - Munich)

Saturday 3rd May
Darren Walsh/Adham El-Effendi lost to Fratangelo/Krueger 4-6 3-6 (Semi-Final - Tallahassee)
Anna Smith/Jocelyn Rae lost to Hsieh/Doi 4-6 2-6 (Semi-Final -  Gifu)
Katie Boulter beat Katy Dunne 7-6 6-4 (Semi-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Marcus Willis beat Neil Pauffley 6-1 6-3 (Final - Edinburgh)
Katie Boulter/Nina Stojanovic beat Dong/Konig 6-4 6-2 (Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Colin Fleming/Ross Hutchins beat Brown/Knowle 6-3 6-2 (Semi-Final - Munich)

Friday 2nd May
Darren Walsh/Adham El-Effendi beat Skugor/Veic 6-4 2-6 10-7 (Quarter-Final - Tallahassee)
Ed Corrie lost to Dane Propoggia 6-2 3-6 4-6 (Quarter-Final - Seoul)
Dan Cox/Mao-Xin Gong beat Meffert/Puetz 6-1 6-1 (Semi-Final - An Ning)
Anna Smith/Jocelyn Rae beat Imanishi/Inoue 7-5 6-2 (Quarter-Final - Gifu)
Katie Boulter beat Eden Silva 7-5 6-3 (Quarter-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Neil Pauffley beat Brydan Klein by withdrawal (Quarter-Final - Edinburgh)
Liam Broady beat Julien Cagnina 6-1 2-0 retirement (Quarter-Final - Edinburgh)
Katy Dunne beat Harriet Dart 6-3 1-6 7-6 (Quarter-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Ashley Hewitt beat Maverick Banes 4-6 6-2 6-3 (Quarter-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Dan Cox/Mao-Xin Gong lost to Bolt/Whittinggton 4-6 3-6 (Final - An Ning)
Marcus Willis beat Gavin Van Peperzeel 7-6 6-4 (Quarter-Final - Edinburgh)
Katie Boulter/Nina Stojanovic beat Silva/Van Der Sypt 3-0 retirement (Semi-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Katy Dunne/Harriet Dart lost to Dong/Konig 3-6 1-6 (Semi-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Jamie Murray/John Peers beat Butorac/Klaasen 7-6 6-2 (Semi-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Neil Pauffley beat Ashley Hewitt 6-2 6-4 (Semi-Final - Edinburgh)
Marcus Willis beat Liam Broady 4-6 6-4 6-3 (Semi-Final - Edinburgh)
James Ward lost to Robby Ginepri 3-6 6-3 2-6 (Quarter-Final - Tallahassee)

Thursday 1st May
David Rice/Sean Thornley lost to Kokkinakis/Kubler 1-6 5-7 (1st Round - Tallahassee)
Richard Gabb lost to Marcus Daniell 5-7 retired (2nd Round - Seoul)
Edward Corrie beat Gengo Kikuchi 6-2 6-4 (2nd Round - Soul)
Naomi Broady lost to Misa Eguchi 7-6 6-7 4-6 (2nd Round - Gifu)
Richard Gabb/Marcus Daniell withdrew against NagaoOku (Quarter-Final - Seoul)
Dan Cox/Mao-Xin Gong beat Baluda/Kravchuk 6-3 6-3 (Quarter-Final - An Ning)
Tara Moore/Naomi Broady lost to Rodionova/Gajdosova 2-6 5-7 (Quarter-Final - Gifu)
Katy Dunne beat Emma Laine 6-2 6-1 (2nd Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Harriet Dart beat Csilla Argyelan 6-0 6-0 (2nd Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Eden Silva beat Elena Van Der Sypt 7-6 7-5 (2nd Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Katie Boulter beat Sri Vaishinavi Peddi Reddy 7-6 6-3 (2nd Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Sabrina Bamburac lost to Pia Konig 2-6 0-6 (2nd Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Edward Corrie/Maximilian Neuchrist lost to Chung/Nam (Quarter Final - Seoul)
Eleanor Dean lost to Olga Doroshina 3-6 5-7 (2nd Round - Antalya)
Jamie Delgado/Gilles Muller lost to Krajicek/Smith 4-6 6-7 (Quarter-Final - Taipei City)
Marcus Willis/Jonny O'Mara beat Liam Broady and Luke Bambridge 6-1 6-4 (Semi-Final - Edinburgh)
Jamie Murray/John Peers beat Dlouhy/Pavic 4-6 7-6 10-6 (Quarter-Final - Munich)
James Marsalek/Juan Sebastian Gomez lost to Pulgar-Garcia/Arauzo-Martinez 4-6 6-7 (Quarter-Final - Mostoles)
Eleanor Dean/Saray Sterenbach lost to Lee/Fomina 3-6 1-6 (Quarter-Final - Antalya)
Katy Dunne/Harriet Dart beat Sills/Melicharkova 6-2 6-0 (Quarter-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Marcus Willis/Jonny O'Mara beat Van Peperzeel/Banes 7-6 6-1 (Final - Edinburgh)
Alexander Jhun/Yusuke Watanuki lost to Ramanathan/Ciumac (Quarter-Final - Antalya)
Jack Oswald/Andrea Camurri lost to Maamoun/Alvarez-Guzman 1-6 0-6 (Quarter-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Eden Silva/Elena Van Der Sypt beat Bogoslavets/Peddi Reddy 6-0 6-4 (Quarter-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
James Ward beat Jason Kubler 2-0 retired (2nd Round - Tallahassee)
Katie Boulter/Nina Stojanovic beat Morgina/Laine 6-2 6-7 10-5 (Quarter-Final - Sharm el Sheikh)
Matt Short/Jan Blecha lost to Pulgar-Garcia/Arenas-Gualda 6-7 retired (Semi-Final - Mostoles)
Joshua Milton lost to Laurent Rochette 6-3 4-6 6-3 (2nd Round - Mostoles)
Darren Walsh/Abham El-Effendi beat Altamirano/Rybakov 6-4 7-6 (1st Round - Tallahassee)

Wednesday 30th April
Tom Knights/James Turbervill lost to Tucker/Vorster 4-6 7-6 3-10 (1st Round - Vero Beach)
Naomi Broady beat Eri Hozumi 6-3 6-4 (1st Round - Gifu)
Tara Moore lost to Tammi Patterson 4-6 4-6 (1st Round - Gifu)
Samantha Murray lost to Qiang Wang 2-6 6-7 (1st Round - Gifu)
Tara Moore/Naomi Broady beat Emily Webley-Smith/Ekaterina Bychkova 6-7 7-5 10-5 (1st Round - Gifu)
Anna Smith/Jocelyn Rae beat Sema/Sema 6-0 6-2 (1st Round - Gifu)
Edward Corrie beat Soong Jae Cho 6-4 4-6 6-3 (1st Round - Seoul)
Richard Gabb/Marcus Daniell beat Bodhidatta/Wachiramanowong 7-6 7-5 (1st Round - Seoul)
Eden Silva beat Disha Satish Agarwal 6-0 6-1 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Jamie Delgado/Gilles Muller beat Chuang/Yu 6-1 6-4 (1st Round - Taipei City)
Marcus Willis beat Keelan Oakley 6-0 6-2 (2nd Round - Edinburgh)
Eleanor Dean beat Kimberley Zimmermann 6-2 6-3 (1st Round - Antalya)
Alexander Jhun lost to Peter Heller 3-6 2-6 (1st Round - Antalya)
Bruce Strachan lost to Gavin Van Peperzeel 2-6 4-6 (2nd Round - Edinburgh)
Neil Pauffley beat Imran Asway 6-3 6-3 (2nd Round - Edinburgh)
Jack Oswald lost to Mauricio Alvarez-Guzman 0-6 1-6 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Liam Broady beat Robert Carter 3-6 6-1 6-1 (2nd Round - Edinburgh)
Colin Fleming/Ross Hutchins beat Cabal/Farah 6-1 6-4 (Quarter-Final - Munich)
Mollie Crouch lost to Oceane Dodin 1-6 4-6 (1st Round - Antalya)
Ashley Hewitt beat Toby Martin 6-2 3-6 6-2 (2nd Round - Edinburgh)
Matt Short lost to Samuel Ribeiro Navarrete 4-6 2-6 (2nd Round - Mostoles)
Dan Cox lost to Nikola Mektic 3-6 4-6 (2nd Round - An Ning)
Katie Boulter beat Alija Merdeeva 6-0 6-1 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Liam Broady/Luke Bambridge beat Myles Orton/Daniel Glancy 6-4 6-4 (Quarter-Final - Edinburgh)
Robert Carter/Ryan Peniston lost to Scott Griekspoor/Kevin Griekspoor (Quarter-Final - Edinburgh)
Francesca Stephenson lost to Ola Abou Zekry 4-6 0-6 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Harriet Dart beat Anna Bogoslavets 6-2 6-0 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Eleanor Dean/Sarah Sterenbach beat Afanasyeva/Kazimova 6-3 6-3 (Quarter-Final - Antalya)
Brydan Klein beat Jathan Malik 1-6 6-3 6-4 (2nd Round - Edinburgh)
Alexander Sendegeya lost to Ty Trombetta 4-6 3-6 (2nd Round - Vero Beach)
Jamie Murray/John Peers beat Satschko/Struff 64 6-3 (1st Round - Munich)
Matt Short/Jan Blecha beat Villacorta-Alonso/Ruano 6-1 6-2 (1st Round - Mostoles)
Myles Orton/Daniel Glancy beat Sille/Cagnina 7-5 7-5 (Quarter-Final - Edinburgh)
Marcus Willis/Jonny O'Mara beat Brydan Klein/Jake Eames 7-6 3-2 retired (Quarter-Final - Edinburgh)

Tuesday 29th April
Jade Windley/Samantha Murray lost to Rika Fujiwara/Tamarine Tanasugarn 1-6 3-6 (1st Round - Gifu)
George Coupland lost to Gengo Kikuchi 5-7 2-6 (1st Round  - Seoul)
Oliver Golding lost to Borna Coric 2-6 3-6 (1st Round - An Ning
Edward Corrie/Maximilian Neuchrist beat Soon Woo Kwon/Duck Hee Lee 6-2 6-0 (1st Round - Seoul)
Dan Cox beat Hyeon Chung 4-6 6-3 6-3 (1st Round - An Ning)
Richard Gabb beat Sun-Yong Kim Jr. 3-6 6-3 6-4 (1st Round - Seoul)
Katy Dunne beat Danielle Konotoptseva (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Jack Oswald/Andrea Camurri beat Petersen/Morozov by walkover (Sharm el Sheikh - 1st Round)

Daniel Cox/Mao-Xin Gong beat Buchanan/Storck 7-5 6-1 (1st Round - AnNing)
Sabrina Bamburac beat Alexandra Riley 6-3 7-5 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Ashley Hewitt beat Daniel Glancy 6-4 6-2 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Eden Silva/Elena Van Der Sypt beat Tsyganova/Kadagidze 6-2 6-0 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Joshua Milton beat Michael Bois 7-5 7-6 (1st Round - Mostoles)
Neil Pauffley beat N. Vijay Sundar Prashanth 6-3 6-4 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Savannah Sills/Tereza Melicharkova beat Alfredsson/Sablijarevic 6-1 6-2 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Imran Asway beat Constantin Belot 6-3 3-6 6-2 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Marcus Willis beat Myles Orton 6-1 6-0 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Brydan Klein beat Jonny O'Mara 6-3 6-7 7-6 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Robert Carter beat Nicolas Rosenzweig 6-1 6-1 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Toby Martin beat David Porter 6-0 6-3 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Alexander Jhun/Yusuke Watanuki beat Muradashvili/Vartanian 6-2 6-2 (1st Round - Antalya)
Eleanor Dean/Saray Sterenbach beat Crouch/Mayer 6-2 6-1 (1st Round - Antalya)
Katy Dunne/Harriet Dart beat Dominique Covington/Aimee Gibson 6-2 6-3 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Katie Boulter/Nina Stojanovic beat Riley/Rigozzi 7-5 6-2 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Sabrina Bamburac/Nevena Selakovic lost to Dong/Konig 6-4 5-7 6-10 (1st Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Ryan Peniston lost to Sander Gille 6-3 3-6 5-7 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Bruce Strachan beat Simon Ede 7-6 4-6 6-4 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Luke Bambridge lost to Gavin Van Peperzeel 2-6 6-4 4-6 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
James Marsalek lost to Jamie Pulgar-Garcia 1-6 6-2 4-6 (1st Round - Mostoles)
Adam Thornton-Brown lost to Matteo Marrai 2-6 3-6 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Keelan Oakley beat Tom Allen 6-3 6-3 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Matt Short beat Juan-Samuel Arauzo-Martinez 6-4 7-6 (1st Round - Mostoles)
Jathan Malik beat Adam Glynn 6-4 6-3 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Robert Carter/Ryan Peniston beat Belot/Ducourau 2-6 6-4 10-3 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Liam Broady beat Scott Griekspoor 6-7 6-2 6-0 (1st Round - Edinburgh)
Brydan Klein/Jake Eames beat Liniger/Prashanth 6-3 6-7 10-6 (1st Round - Edinburgh)

Monday 28th April
Emily Webley Smith/Ekaterina Bychkova beat Mahiro Date/Yuki Ukai 6-1 6-1 (Final Qualifying Round - Gifu)
Oliver Golding/Borna Coric lost to Grigelis/Mektic 3-6 (0)6-7 (1st Round - An Ning)
Eden Silva beat Disha Satish Agarwal 6-0 6-0 (Final Qualifying Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Savannah Sills lost to Ola Abou Zakry 4-6 3-6 (2nd Qualifying Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Aimee Gibson lost to Nevena Selakovic 1-6 1-6 (2nd Qualifying Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Dominique Covington lost to Milica Novakovic 3-6 4-6 (2nd Qualifying Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
Sabrina Bamburac beat Anastasia Tsyganova 6-2 6-3 (2nd Qualifying Round - Sharm el Sheikh)
James Marsalek/Juan Sebastian Gomez beat Alberto Santos Bravo/Rafael Mazon-Hernandez 7-6 3-6 10-1 (1st Round - Mostoles)
Colin Fleming/Ross Hutchins beat Bracciali/Seppi 6-3 7-5 (1st Round - Munich)
Matt Short/Jan Blecha beat Carl Stefan Privee Boudeguer/Jamie Fermosell 6-3 6-2 (1st Round - Mostoles)
James Ward beat Dennis Nevolo 6-1 6-1 (1st Round - Tallahassee)
David Rice lost to Antonio Veic (3)6-7 1-6 (1st Round - Tallahassee)

Sunday 27th April
Jade Windley lost to Akiko Yonemura 6-7 6-4 2-6 (1st Qualifying Round - Gifu)
Emily Webley-Smith lost to Miki Miyamura 6-7 6-4 4-6 (1st Qualifying Round - Gifu)
Anna Smith lost to Yuka Higuchi 2-6 2-6 (!st Qualifying Round - Gifu)  

Saturday 26th April
Sean Thornley lost to Andrew Carter 6-4 2-6 3-5 (1st Qualifying Round - Tallahassee) 

Sports Ladder (21st-28th April)

UP - Greg Rutherford - Greg Rutherford is unfortunately always likely to go down as the forgotten man after the Super Saturday of London 2012 after collecting a gold medal alongside the poster boy and girl Mo Farah and Jess Ennis. As well as sharing his gold medal success he also, until this week, shared the British long jump record with Chris Tomlinson. However, this week he leapt a huge 8.51m to claim the British crown for himself during an event at the Olympic Training Centre.

UP - Couch and Barrow - All the talk during this weeks World Series diving event was about Tom Daley and which medal he would win. Well it turns out the answer is none as he finished fifth. Instead it was the women's pair of Tonia Couch and Sarah Barrow who led the way for Britain, picking up a superb silver medal with 321.24. They weren't the only pair who leapt to success as Rebecca Gallantry and Hannah Starling narrowly took the bronze medal with a 302.88.

UP - Paddy Power - Paddy Power have become the ultimate trolls of the sporting world this year with a spat of hilarious and controversial publicity stunts and television adverts. After condemning David Moyes to unemployment last weekend with their Grim Reaper stunt they capitalised on the sacking, erecting a statue of Moyes outside of Anfield thanking him 'For Services to Liverpool Football Club'. They may be making enemies but at least they're doing it in humourous style.

UP - Rajiv Ouseph - It isn't often that the loose-wristed sport of badminton makes the sports ladder but this week Rajiv Ouseph collected Britain's first singles medal for four years when he last won a bronze medal. This time Ouseph was able to go one better, collecting a silver medal to go alongside his European Team Championship medal of the same colour from February. Perhaps in four years time he can go one better and get the gold.

UP - Broady Siblings - It's a rare occurrence that we get to applaud British tennis success but this week we got to congratulate not one, not two, but four British Champions for the first time since 2008. Whilst Eleanor Dean won in Antalya and Alexander Ward won in Heraklion it was the two Broady siblings that led the way. With Liam winning in Bournemouth and Naomi winning in Namangan it was a fantastic weekend for them and British tennis. Success clearly runs in the family.

DOWN - Giro d'Italia - For many casual fans the Giro d'Italia is considered the second largest annual cycling event behind the Tour de France. Yet British interest will be decidedly short for this years event after a number of key withdrawals this week. Both Chris Froome and Sir Bradley Wiggins have joined Mark Cavendish in skipping this event in order to prepare for the Tour. At least it leaves us guessing between Wiggins and Froome for the Tour.

DOWN - Emile Heskey - Don't you just hate it when the public start a petition to get you knighted and the government throw those plans back in your face? The problems of the common man ey? Well that's what happened this week to Emile Heskey as a petition set up by Daniel McCarthy to get the England legend knighted was turned down by the government. Come on Mr Cameron, I know its a knighthood and everything but where's your sense of humour!

DOWN - Wirral Cricket Club - As a cricket club, you know you're having a bad day at the office when you have more ducks than a Chinese restaurant. Wirral's week was absolute quackers as they bowed out of a Cheshire League Division Three fixture with just three runs. It gets even worse if only one of those comes from your batsman and the other two are from extras. At least they saw the funny side, tweeting some old legends for some coaching advice.

DOWN - Jose Mourinho - He used to be the man who just oozed charm. The man we all loved for his quirky but brilliant nature. Since his return though he has just become increasingly dislikable. Whether it was his permanent delusion that they weren't in the title race, or the way he accused West Ham of '19th Century football', before playing in an identical way on multiple occasions. His multiple touchline runs and celebrations have lacked class and, to me at least, he is no longer the 'Special One'.

DOWN - Rafael Nadal - Well, well, well. Mr Nadal seems to be tumbling down the ladder in recent weeks doesn't he? Another huge loss on clay to further dent the world number ones confidence as he fell this week to Nicolas Almagro in Barcelona for the first time since 2003, ending a 41 match unbeaten run. This was also the first time he has lost to his fellow Spaniard. With the French Open approaching rapidly Rafa needs something to change, and fast.

Nadal Shock as Win Streak Ended

The crowd at this week's Barcelona Open were treated to a shock on Friday as eight time Champion, Rafael Nadal, crashed out of tournament for the first time in eleven years.

The 'King of Clay' had won each of his last 41 matches in Barcelona, only previously losing to Alex Corretja in his debut tournament of 2003. As well as that, the Spaniard had previously lost just two sets in all 41 of those victories.

But his three set loss to fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro doubled this tally as he was defeated 2-6 7-6 6-4 in the quarter-finals. This was also the first time that Almagro had ever managed to beat Nadal in ten previous meetings.

The match started in routine fashion as Nadal broke his fellow countryman twice to claim the first set 6-2/ However, from there the tide began to turn as Almagro made less sloppy errors, finding much more epth in the court than Nadal.

A tight second set was decided by a tie-break and it was Almagro who emerged victorious, taking only his second set off the 13 time Grand Slam Champion to force a decider.

With momentum firmly behind him, Almagro pushed on, capitalising on some wayward serving from his opponent to get the vital break and eventually serve out the match to book a place in the semi-finals against the Columbian Santiago Giraldo.

This is by no means the first shock of the year for Nadal who, after enduring a phenomenal 2013, has suffered a number of uncharacteristic losses already. His third round loss to Alexandr Dolgopolov in Indian Wells and his defeat last week in Monte Carlo to David Ferrer suggest he is not as his best as he prepares for the French Open.

And with significant ranking points to defend in recent weeks, Nadal will have to look much sharper on the clay courts of Madrid in two weeks time if he is to fend off the challenge of Novak Djokovic for his world number one position.

100 Posts - Thank You!

Well we've made it. Triple figures. One hundred posts. And first thing is first, I want to thank you guys. Without you guys I would have no audience and no feedback so for that I am eternally grateful. Since I started last March I didn't anticipate how supportive everyone would be and I hope you will all continue to support me as I pursue this career in sports journalism.

When I cast my eyes back to the year just gone its quite surprising how much I have developed and learnt since starting my writing. What initially started out as a single match report on an international friendly between Brazil and Russia has developed into a full-blooded sports blog covering a huge variety of sports from Tennis and Golf to Darts and Curling. This in turn extended out of just writing as I now work with an excellent and dedicated team on the University Radio Nottingham Sports Show and am part of the growing Nottingham Forest and Notts County Podcast, as well as working, albeit irregularly, on my YouTube channel.

The big question I have to ask myself now is where do I see the blog going in the future? Well one thing that is for certain is that I will be doing everything in my power to maintain a regular stream of new material in order to try and entertain you guys and myself. I currently have two main projects, one being the 'Sports Ladder' which has been a major part of the blog for a number of months now. The other is my new 'Tennis Brit Watch' project which began almost alongside my one hundredth post.

The Sports Ladder for me is definitely one of the most enjoyable projects i've ever embarked on. By keeping a close eye on sports stories every day, it has enabled me to stumble across some of the strangest and wackiest stories in the world of sport. Only this week for example the story of Pablo Larrazabal and his golf course hornet incident proves the ridiculous and unpredictable nature of the sporting world. But for me one of the highlights is unearthing sportsman that perhaps wouldn't usually get the recognition they deserve. The likes of Ben Maher, Tai Woofinden, Rowan Cheshire and Yulia Lipnitskaya are all names that, had I not done this feature, I would probably never have heard of, so its great that this can promote the achievements of these individuals and others.

But what of the new feature, the 'Tennis Brit Watch'? For me tennis is a sport closer to my heart than most others as it is the one I grew up playing and watching. Whilst for a few years I lost touch with the tennis world the blog and the opportunities that come alongside it have completely rekindled my love for the sport. It was mainly my work this year for SEaT Capital that re-lit this fire but also a growing discontent with the media attention shown to British tennis players. Everyone knows Andy Murray but many people would fail to recognise a single other British male, despite the fact that British doubles players occupy 10% of the top forty players in the World.  My aim, alongside a few select others is to try and boost the recognition for these lesser known athletes amongst both fans of sport and the public in general. The feature is only in it's first week but seems to have been supported well so far and I shall look to develop this over the coming months.

Of course, outside of these two regular features there will still be other blogs for those of you more interested in other sports. Football is of course a major talking point an with the World Cup soon upon us I'm sure that will take centre-stage for a few months throughout the summer. Alongside this I intent to begin increasing my output of opinion pieces. These require more development and research than many of my current reporting pieces which are why they are more rare but hopefully as I continue to develop their numbers will increase.

The other question that many of you have asked me in recent weeks has been the disappearance of my YouTube channel and why this has happened. The simple reason for this is that I was struggling to fit filming and editing it alongside my writing, my radio work and my degree. I was also not completely happy with the content I was creating and felt that I could do better so have decided to step away from it for the foreseeable future to decide how best to take it forward. I have a number ideas so it is by no means dead and buried but do not expect anything to emerge any time soon.

So that just about wraps up my centenary update. I hope you guys have learnt how much I enjoy working on these pieces and projects and I hope you enjoy them just as much. More than anything else though I want to thank all of my readers for your fantastic and consistent support and I will continue to listen to and act upon any criticism or feedback you have on my work. Until the two hundredth post, I return to my sporting ways and leave the diary-style blogs to those who don't use as many 'I's' as I have in this blog.

Thanks y'all!

Rusedski To Coach Youngster Edmund

Former British number one, Greg Rusedski, has been announced as the new coach of promising youngster Kyle Edmund.

Edmund is the highest ranked British teenager and having recently broken into the top 300 in the world, has opted to recruit the former world number four as he aims to rise further.

Rusedski has begun his post immediately, travelling with the nineteen year old to a challenger event in Vercelli. Edmund has already won four matches after coming through qualifying before defeating fourth seed Alijaz Bedene 6-3 6-2 in the opening round.

Edmund's appointment replaces his previous coach, Colin Beecher who works for the LTA and had worked with Edmund to earn him a spot on the GB Davis Cup team in February.

But current LTA Chief Executive Michael Downey believes this is the right decision, telling the BBC, "I think this is great that this has happened. No disrespect to Colin Beecher, who did great work, but change sometimes should happen. I think it reflects very highly that not only did Kyle look for a change but that Greg wanted to step up and take on this challenge. Greg has stepped over the line, and said 'give me the keys'."

Edmund is next in action on Thursday in the second round of Vercelli, where he faces the hardened French veteran David Guez for a place in the quarter-finals.

Published on SEaT Capital.

Real in Control of Semi-Final Tie

Real Madrid hold a slender one goal advantage heading into the second leg of their Champions League semi-final clash with Bayern Munich as a nineteenth minute goal by Karim Benzema proved to be the only thing separating the European giants.

Despite dominating possession for most of the game, Bayern came away from the Bernabeu empty-handed as a solid Madrid defence kept them at bay. The German team failed to properly test Iker Casillas in the Real Madrid goal, save for a Mario Gotze chance in the second half.

At the other end of the pitch Real Madrid may come away disappointed to have just got the one goal after a number of free-flowing counter-attacks were not converted. While Karim Benzema tucked away a neat move, Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel Di Mario also both had decent first half chances to extend the lead which they blazed over the bar.

Bayern quickly settled into a passing rhythm whilst Real struggled to maintain posession in front of their home crowd. Bayern nearly capitalized on this sluggish start when Arjen Robben's deflected shot flew narrowly past the post.

But it was the Spanish side who hit first with vitually their first attack of the game. A classic counter attacking move saw Ronaldo set Coentrao free down the left, his low cross tucked into an empty net by Karim Benzema.

The goal kick-started Real, who nearly had a second moments later when Ronaldo sent his towering header straight down the keepers throat. Di Maria then had a lengthy shot comfortably saved by Manuel Neuer as they hit Bayern with another fast-paced counter-attack.

For all their early possession Bayern failed to create any real chances in the opening half an hour and were fortunate to find themselves just one goal down as Cristiano Ronaldo sent a seemingly simple chance uncharacteristically over the bar.

That wasted opportunity was looking like it could be costly as Bayern ramped up the pressure, the German outfit creating a number of half chances, most of which were flowing through the hugely influential Robben.

Once again though it was Real causing the serious problems as Angel Di Maria found himself with acres of space on the right hand side. However, like Ronaldo, he was unable to capitalise firing his shot high into the stands as his team mates looked on in despair.

Despite leading at the break, Real would have received an inevitable ear-full from Ancelotti as they struggled to maintain possession or convert their chances. And for a brief moment it looked as though they may get a second, Ronaldo testing Neuer with a low shot, palmed away by the German international.

The second half quickly settled into a similar rhythm to the first, Bayern flirting with the Spanish box but unable to create anything dangerous with Real quite happy to soak up the Bayern possession and hit with pace on the counter.

Ancelotti had quite evidently pushed his team higher up the pitch in the second half and this nearly became their undoing, Robben driving through the centre of the park but his shot found the grateful arms of Casillas.

On the touchline Guardiola was the first to crack, replacing the ragged-looking Rafinha with Javi Martinez in an attempt to keep Madrid's advantage to just one. Regardless it was still the Spanish side testing the opposition keeper, Ronaldo capitalising on a quick free kick to call Neuer into action again.

Guardiola acted again, this time bringing on the young German international Mario Gotze as Real Madrid were forced into the substitution of Pepe as the centre-back tweaked his hamstring in an awkward fall. Both managers were keen to mix things up in the final fifteen minutes, as Ronaldo departed for Gareth Bale on his return from injury as well as Thomas Mueller entering the fray for Bastien Schweinsteiger.

As the game drew towards it's conclusion Bayern continued to dominate possession, Mueller flashing a drive round the post. But the big chance came in the eighty-third minute. A mix-up on the right hand side allowed the ball to fall to an unmarked Gotze in the box. The German fired a snapshot but Casillas was equal to it, producing a splendid save to maintain his clean sheet.

There was almost controversy in stoppage time as it seemed as though referee Howard Webb had failed to award Bayern a penalty, but the Englishman made the correct decision as Xabi Alonso nicked the ball ahead of a furious Mueller.

The two sides will meet again next Tuesday for the decisive leg at the Allianz Arena.

Tennis Brit Watch Week 17

Competitors

ATP

Barcelona - Doubles - Dominic Inglot (partnering Treat Huey) (Lost 1st Round - Bopanna/Qureshi 1-6 4-6)

Bucharest - Doubles - Colin Fleming and Ross Hutchins [PR] (Lost Quarter Final - Rojer/Tecau (3)6-7 (8)6-7)
                              -  Jamie Murray (Partnering John Peers) (Lost Semi-Final -  Rojer/Tecau 6-2 (3)6-7 8-10)
                              - Jonathan Marray (Partnering Lukas Dlouhy) (Lost 1st Round - Istomin/Rosol (6)6-7 5-7)


Savannah Challenger - Singles - David Rice - (Lost 1st Round - Alex Bogomolov Jr 2-6 2-6)
                                             - James Ward (Lost 2nd Round - Jack Sock 5-7 1-6)
                               -Doubles - James Ward (partnering Franko Skugor) (Lost 1st Round - Monroe/Sock 2-6 1-6)
                                             - David Rice and Sean Thornley (Lost 1st Round - Jenkins/Young 6-4 5-7 8-10)

Shenzen Challenger - Singles - Daniel Cox (Lost 2nd Round - Gilles Muller 3-6 4-6)
                             - Doubles - Daniel Cox (partnering Di Wu) (Lost 1st Round - Sugita/Udomchoke 3-6 6-3 5-10)
                                            - Jamie Delgado (partnering Gilles Muller) (Lost Semi Final - Meffert/Puetz 2-6 6-3 12-14)

Vercelli Challenger - Singles - Kyle Edmund (Lost Quarter-Final - Simone Bolelli (3)6-7 7-6(3) 0-6)


Bournemouth Futures - Marcus Willis (Lost 1st Round - Kevin Griekspoor 7-5 5-7 1-6)
                                 - Brydan Klein (Lost 2nd Round - Kamil Majchrzak 3-6 3-6)
                                 - Liam Broady (CHAMPION)
                                 - Josh Milton (Lost Quarter-Final - Liam Broady 3-6 0-6)
                                 - Luke Bambridge (Runner-Up - Liam Broady 5-7 2-6)
                                 - Jack Carpenter (Lost 1st Round - Gavin Van Peperzeel 4-6 6-7)
                                 - Toby Martin (Lost 2nd Round - Jathan Malik 3-6 6-2 3-6)
                                 - Jonny O'Mara (Lost 1st Round - Liam Broady 6-4 6-3)
                                 - Jathan Malik (Lost Quarter Final - Pirmin Haenle 2-6 6-3 1-6)
                                 - Mark Whitehouse (Lost 1st Round - Tom Allen 6-2 6-7 7-6)
                                 - Tom Allen (Lost 2nd Round - Kevin Griekspoor 1-6 2-6)
                                 - David Porter (Lost 1st Round - Tobias Simon 1-6 6-7)
                                 - Adam Skalsky (Lost 1st Round - N. Vijay Sundar Prashanth 4-6 0-6)
                                 - Adam Thornton-Brown (Lost 1st Round - Robert Carter 4-6 6-4 7-5)
                                 - Lewis Burton (Lost 1st Round - Pirmin Haenle 6-7 4-6)
                                 - Adam Glynn (Lost 1st Round - Luke Bambridge 6-3 7-5)
                                 - Sam Hutt (Lost 1st Round - Myles Orton 6-4 6-2)
                                 - Myles Orton  (Lost 2nd Round - Luke Bambridge 1-6 2-6)

Heraklion Futures - Alex Ward (CHAMPION)
                           - Neil Pauffley (Lost 2nd Round - Ervin Eleskovic 6-7 2-6)
                           - Cameron Norrie (Lost Semi-Final - Ricardo Rodriguez 2-6 2-6)
                           - Harry Meehan (Lost 2nd Round - Cameron Norrie 3-6  1-6)

Seoul Futures - Richard Gabb (Lost in Second Round - Frederik Nielsen 1-6 6-3 1-6)
                    - George Coupland (Lost 1st Round - Jung-Woong Na 6-2 4-6 2-6)

Madrid Futures - Matthew Short (Lost 1st Round - Marc Giner 5-7 4-6)


WTA

Stuttgart - Johanna Konta - (Lost 1st Round - Kaia Kanepi (4)6-7 4-6)

Seoul 50k - Samantha Murray (Lost 1st Round - Ivana Jorovic 4-6 3-6)

Namangan 25k - Naomi Broady (CHAMPION)
                     - Tara Moore (Lost 1st Round - Polina Monova 4-6 4-6)

Nanning 25k - Emily Webley-Smith (Lost 1st Round - Nao Hibino 2-6 2-6)

Sharm el Sheikh 10k - Katy Dunne (Lost 1st Round - Harriet Dart 2-6 2-6)
                              - Katie Boulter (Runner-Up - Amy Bowtell 7-6 0-6 6-7)
                              - Danielle Konotoptseva (Lost 2nd Round - Valeria Prosperi 3-6 2-6)
                              - Harriet Dart (Lost 2nd Round - Emma Laine 3-6 6-2 4-6)
                              - Eden Silva (Lost 2nd Round - Nuria Parrizas-Diaz 3-6 5-7)
                              - Sabrina Bambura (Lost 1st Round - Ekaterina Tretyak 6-7 6-0 2-6)
                              - Dominique Covington (Lost 1st Round - Pia Konig 4-6 1-6)
 
Antalya 10k - Eleanor Dean (CHAMPION)

Sunday 27th April
Eleanor Dean beat Lena Reichel 5-1 retired (Antalya - Final)
Alex Ward beat Ricardo Rodriguez 6-0 6-3 (Heraklion - Final)
Katie Boulter lost to Amy Bowtell 7-6 0-6 6-7 (Sharm el Sheik - Final)

Saturday 26th April
Naomi Broady beat Nigina Abduraimova 6-3 6-4 (Namangan - Final)
Alexander Ward beat Michal Konecny 6-4 3-0 retired (Heraklion - Semi-Final)
Katie Boulter beat Elena Teodora Cadar 6-3 6-2 (Sharm el Sheikh - Semi-Final)
Cameron Norrie lost to Ricardo Rodriguez 2-6 2-6  (Heraklion - Semi-Final)
Eleanor Dean beat Deborah Kerfs 6-4 6-0 (Antalya - Semi-Final)
Liam Broady beat Luke Bambridge 7-5 6-2 (Bournemouth - Final)
Jamie Murray/John Peers lost to Rojer/Tecau 6-2 (3)6-7 8-10 (Bucharest - Semi-Final)

Friday 25th April
James Ward lost to Jack Sock 7-5 6-1 (Savannah 2nd Round)
Naomi Broady beat Ekaterina Bychkova 3-6 6-1 6-4 (Namangan - Semi-Final)
Eleanor Dean beat Caroline Romeo 6-3 6-1 (Antalya - Quarter-Final)
Jamie Delgado/Gilles Muller lost to Meffert/Puetz 2-6 6-3 12-14 (Shenzhen - Semi-Final)
Cameron Norrie beat Dimitar Kuzmanov 6-1 6-1 (Heraklion - Quarter-Final)
Alex Ward beat Ervin Eleskovic 6-3 7-5 (Heraklion - Quarter-Final)
Luke Bambridge beat Pirmin Haenle 6-1 7-6 (Bournemouth - Semi-Final)
Liam Broady beat Gavin Van Peperzeel 6-3 6-2 (Bournemouth - Semi-Final)
Katie Boulter beat Valeria Prosperi 5-7 6-3 6-2 (Sharm el Sheikh - Quarter-Final)
Kyle Edmund lost to Simone Bolelli (3)6-7 7-6(3) 0-6 (Vercelli - Quarter-Final)
Colin Fleming/Ross Hutchins lost to Rojer/Tecau (3)6-7 (8)7-6 (Bucharest - Quarter-Final)


Thursday 24th April
David Rice/Sean Thornley lost to Jenkins/Young 6-4 5-7 8-10 (Savannah - 1st Round)
Richard Gabb lost to Frederik Nielsen 1-6 6-3 1-6 (Seoul - 2nd Round)
Katie Boulter beat Veronika Stotyka 6-0 6-4 (Sharm el Sheikh - 2nd Round)
Jamie Delgado/Gilles Muller beat Bolt/Whittington 7-6(7) 2-6 10-5 (Shenzen - Quarter-Final)
Alexander Ward beat Harry Meehan 6-1 6-1 (Heraklion - 2nd Round)
Cameron Norrie beat Elie Rousset 6-3 6-1 (Heraklion - 2nd Round)
Neil Pauffley lost to Ervin Eleskovic 6-7 2-6 (Heraklion - 2nd Round)
Harriet Dart lost to Emma Laine 3-6 6-2 4-5 (Sharm el Sheikh - 2nd Round)
Brydan Klein lost to Kamil Majchrzak 3-6 3-6 (Bournemouth - 2nd Round)
Naomi Broady beat Darya Kasatkina 6-3 1-6 6-1 (Namangan - Quarter-Final)
Jathan Malik beat Toby Martin 6-3 2-6 6-3 (Bournemouth - 2nd Round)
Eden Silva lost to Nuria Parrizas-Diaz 3-6 5-7 (Sharm el Sheikh - 2nd Round)
Eleanor Dean beat Victoria Rodriguez 7-6 7-5 (Antalya - 2nd Round)
Tom Allen lost to Kevin Griekspoor 1-6 2-6 (Bournemouth - 2nd Round)
Luke Bambridge beat Myles Orton 6-1 6-2 (Bournemouth - 2nd Round)
Danielle Konotoptseva lost to Valeria Prosperi 3-6 2-6 (Sharm el Sheikh - 2nd Round)
Liam Broady beat N. Vijay Sundar Prashanth 6-3 6-4 (Bournemouth - 2nd Round)
Kyle Edmund beat David Guez 6-3 6-2 (Vercelli - 2nd Round)
Jathan Malik lost to Pirmin Haenle 2-6 6-3 1-6 (Bournemouth - Quarter-Final)
Jamie Murray/John Peers beat Bracciali/Seppi 6-1 6-2 (Bucharest - Quarter-Final)
Liam Broady beat Joshua Milton 6-3 6-0 (Bournemouth - Quarter-Final)
Luke Bambridge beat Kamil Majchrzak 3-6 6-4 7-5 (Bournemouth - Quarter-Final)

Wednesday 23rd April
Daniel Cox lost to Gilles Muller 3-6 4-6 (Shenzhen - 2nd Round)
Samantha Murray lost to Ivana Jorovic 4-6 3-6 (Seoul - 1st Round)
Emily Webley-Smith lost to Nao Hibino 2-6 2-6 (Nanning - 1st Round)
Daniel Cox/Di Wu lost to Sugita/Udomchoke 3-6 6-3 5-10 (Shenzhen - 1st Round)
Alexander Ward beat Florian Barth 6-0 6-1 (Heraklion - 1st Round)
Naomi Broady beat Prarthana Thombare 6-2 6-1 (Namangan - 2nd Round)
Jamie Delgado/Gilles Muller beat Gong/Zhang 6-3 6-1 (Shenzhen - 1st Round)
Harry Meehan beat Ioannis Brokakis 6-1 6-3 (Heraklion - 1st Round)
Cameron Norrie beat David Simunek 6-0 6-2 (Heraklion - 1st Round)
Matt Short lost to Marc Giner 5-7 4-6 (Madrid - 1st Round)
Harriet Dart beat Katy Dunne 6-2 6-2 (Sharm el Sheikh - 1st Round)
Colin Fleming/Ross Hutchins beat Emmrich/Kas 7-5 6-3 (Bucharest - 1st Round)
Dominique Covington lost to Pia Konig 4-6 1-6 (Sharm el Sheikh - 1st Round)
Eden Silva beat Chantelle Rigozzi 6-1 6-2 (Sharm el Sheikh - 1st Round)

Tuesday 22nd April
Richard Gabb beat Daniel Nguyen 6-1 6-3 (Seoul - 1st Round)
George Coupland lost to Jung-Woong Na 6-2 4-6 2-6 (Seoul - 1st Round)
Tara Moore lost to Polina Monova 4-6 4-6 (Namangan - 1st Round)
Katie Boulter beat Anna Morgina 7-5 6-3 (Sharm el Sheikh - 1st Round)
Sabrina Bamburac lost to Ekaterina Tretyak 6-7 6-0 2-6 (Sharm el Sheikh - 1st Round)
Danielle Konotoptseva beat Sri Vaishnavi Peddi Reddy 6-3 6-4 (Sharm el Sheikh - 1st Round)
Eleanor Dean beat Anastasiya Prenko 6-0 6-2 (Antalya - 1st Round)
Jamie Murray/John Peers beat Bednarek/Pavic 6-3 6-4 (Bucharest - 1st Round)
Neil Pauffley beat hristos Antonopoulos 6-0 6-0 (Heraklion - 1st Round)
Kyle Edmund beat Aljaz Bedene 6-3 6-2 (Vercelli - 1st Round)
Liam Broady beat Jonny O'Mara 6-4 6-3 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
Jathan Malik beat Jake Eames 6-4 6-3 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
Luke Bambridge beat Adam Glynn 6-3 7-5 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
Dominic Inglot/Treat Huey lost to Bopanna/Qureshi 1-6 4-6 (Barcelona - 1st Round)
Jack Carpenter lost to Gavin Van Peperzeel 4-6 6-7 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
Jonny Marray/Lukas Dlouhy lost to Istomin/Rosol (6)6-7 5-7 (Bucharest - 1st Round)
Brydan Klein beat Nicolas Rosenzweig 6-4 6-2 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
Marcus Willis lost to Kevin Griekspoor 7-5 5-7 1-6 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
David Porter lost to Tobias Simon 1-6 6-7 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
Joshua Milton beat Simon Ede 6-3 6-1 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
Lewis Burton lost to Pirmin Haenle 6-7 4-6 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
Toby Martin beat Maverick Banes 6-4 6-3 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
James Ward beat Jean-Yves Aubone (4)6-7 6-2 6-4 (Savannah - 1st Round)
Tom Allen beat Mark Whitehouse 6-2 6-7 7-6 (Bournemouth - 1st Round)
James Ward/Franko Skugor lost to Monroe/Sock 2-6 1-6 (Savannah - 1st Round)

Monday 21st April
Johanna Konta beat Anna Zaja (4)6-7 6-2 6-4 (Stuttgart - Qualifying 2nd Round)
Daniel Cox beat Xin Gao 6-3 6-0 (Shenzen - 1st Round)
Naomi Broady beat Andrea Gamiz 6-4 6-3 (Namangan 25k - 1st Round)
Harry Meehan beat Sergey Dyakonov 6-3 6-1 (Heraklion - Qualifying 2nd Round)
Eden Silva beat Rio Kitagawa 6-1 6-1 (Sharm el Sheikh - Qualifying 2nd Round)
Kyle Edmund beat Viktor Galovic 6-4 7-6(0) (Vercelli - Qualifying 2nd Round)
Kyle Edmund beat Jules Marie 7-6(7) 6-2 (Vercelli - Qualifying Final Round)
Johanna Konta lost to Gioia Barbieri 4-6 2-6 (Stuttgart - Qualifying Final Round)
Johanna Konta [Lucky Loser] lost to Kaia Kanepi (4)6-7 4-6 (Stuttgart - 1st Round)
David Rice lost to Alex Bogomolov Jr 2-6 2-6 (Savannah - 1st Round)

Sports Ladder (14th-20th April)

UP - Gareth Bale - How do you prove to an unconvinced fan base that you are good enough for your team? Well scoring an outstanding winner in a cup final will certainly go some way towards proving it. That is precisely what the Welsh wizard did this week, as he slaughtered Marc Bartra for pace, running from the half-way line to the goal in seven seconds before tucking underneath the Barcelona keeper to secure the Copa Del Rey for Real Madrid. Success for the Brit abroad.

UP - Jazz Carlin - An excellent week for Welsh swimmer Jazz Carlin who smashed her welsh record with a time of eight minutes 18.36 seconds in the 800 meters freestyle. As well as setting a new national record, Carlin also set the fastest time in the World this year in her discipline as she heads towards the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. With two medals already under her belt, the youngster will be looking to make it three this year.
 
UP - Crystal Palace - Go on then. Who honestly predicted that Palace would avoid relegation this year? Who thought they would be thirteen points clear of relegation with three games to go? Oh you did did you? Well then you're a liar. What an incredible job Tony Pulis has done since arriving at Selhurst Park. Not only has he steadied the ship but he has created a team that can get the ball down and play. With five victories on the bounce can they finish in the top half?
 
UP - Charlotte Dujardin - What a fantastic weekend the double Olympic champion has had. The equestrian star opened up with a record breaking Grand Prix victory on Saturday, beating her own previous record of 85.942% with a 87.129% riding on her horse Valegro. The Brit then followed this up with another victory in the World Cup freestyle with an exceptional 92.179% to claim her second gold medal of the weekend. Now that's a productive bank holiday.

UP - Liam Phillips - Another marvellous double victory but this time on a BMX instead of a horse, with Britain Liam Phillips sweeping up both the Supercross and the time trial at the season's first BMX World Series. Phillips continued from where he left off last year when he was crowned World Champion in New Zealand. It was a strong week for British riders in general as both Kyle Evans and Charlotte Green finished inside the top five as well.

DOWN - Pablo Larrazabal - I've seen some bizarre stories in my short lifetime but this really is up there. Poor Pablo Larrazabal had to leap into a lake in the second round of this weeks Malaysian Open after being attacked by a storm of hornets. The Spaniard described it as "the scariest moment of his career" and was only able to continue after injections and medical examinations which said he was in a fit state to carry on. Never has a golfer been so happy to be in the water hazard.

DOWN - Chelsea - Is that Mourinho's title challenge done? Not for definite, but this week could prove to be a major blow over the next few weeks. A 2-1 loss to Sunderland could be the final nail in the coffin for Chelsea's title challenge as Liverpool's eleven game winning run shows no signs of ending. And with an important mid week Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid, could the season get even worse for the Special One?

DOWN - Daniel Ricciardo - A mixed week for Daniel Ricciardo. Disappointingly for him the appeal against his second place disqualification in Australia was declined so he will lose his maiden podium at his home Grand Prix. However, he did once again out-qualify his team mate Sebastien Vettel and also beat him in this weekends Chinese GP. This left the current world champion notably rattled. Has Ricciardo made a foolish enemy of his team mate?

DOWN - David Moyes - Is the Chosen One about to become the Fired One? Sunday's 2-0 defeat to Moyes' former club Everton at the weekend may well be the final straw as strong rumours circulated on Monday that the end is nigh for the Scotsman. With suggestions that dressing room confidence is low after reports of Danny Welbeck wanting out it looks like there is no way back now. Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement wish looks to be falling flat.

DOWN - Rafael Nadal - It was last year we began to talk about Roger Federer's possible retirement. Andy Murray decline has set in since his Wimbledon victory and now Rafael Nadal looks to be struggling. The dominance of the top four is well and truly splintered. Nadal failed to reach the Monte Carlo Masters final for the first time since 2004 and alongside his Australian Open final loss and also his Indian Wells defeat this year, could it be that another is about to fall in this tennis shake-up?

Federer and Djokovic To Miss French Open?

This year's French Open may lose two of its recognisable faces as both Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic are doubts for this years second Grand Slam.

Djokovic will be in a race against time to return from a wrist injury which left him weak and limp in his defeat to Roger Federer in the semi-finals of this weeks Monte Carlo Masters. Federer on the other hand, may have to miss the tournament to be with his wife as she gives birth to the couples third child.

Djokovic began suffering heavily from his wrist injury in the quarter-finals of this weeks masters, labouring to a lengthy three set victory against Guillermo Garcia-Lopez before tumbling out to Roger Federer 7-5 6-2. The loss brought an end to an exceptional run in Masters tournaments after winning the last four.

Speaking to BBC Sport after the match, Djokovic said, "I just rest now. I cannot play tennis for some time. How long, I don't know". However, unlike Laura Robson and Juan Martin Del Potro, Djokovic confirmed that he would not need surgery as there is no serious damage.

Djokovic went on to say, I'm going to go see doctors tonight and then tomorrow again have another MRI, to see if anything changed in the seven days since I had the last one. It's really not in my hands any more. I'm going to rest and see when it can heal 100%, then I will be back on the court."

On the other side of the court, Roger Federer has confirmde that, should his wife give birth he would abandon the French Open to be at her side as she gives birth to their son. It is not known how far into the pregnancy Mirka is, but in an interview with BBC Sport Federer hinted that he would have no qualms missing the French Open if he had to.

"It's a priority for me trying to be there, trying to support my wife. I've played enough tennis matches. Missing a tournament or missing a match wouldn't change anything for me." When asked specifically about the French Open he replied, Yeah, let's talk about it when it would happen."

Today, Roger Federer takes part in the first all-Swiss final since 2000 when he takes on Stanislas Wawrinka, the victor taking both the Monte Carlo title and also third place in the rankings.

Published on SEaT Capital.

Surgery Keeps Robson Out of Wimbledon

Laura Robson looks set to miss both the French Open and Wimbledon as she undergoes minor surgery on her left wrist.

The youngster has been struggling with both wrists over the last year or so and has played just the one competitive match this year, a disappointing loss in the opening round of the Australian Open to Kristen Flipkens.

Earlier in the season she had also been forced to withdraw from both Hobart and the ASB Classic in New Zealand and had not entered a competition since. She was scheduled to take part in both Morocco and Madrid in the next few weeks but has withdrawn from both.

Robson announced the surgery through a light-hearted facebook message, stating that "I wanted to inform my lovely supporters that I have decided to have minor wrist surgery at the Mayo clinic with one of the best wrist doctors in the world, Dr. Richard Berger. Dr. Berger is very confident that I will be able to return to the tennis court pain free before you even have time to miss me. Although sadly, I will have to miss the French Open and Wimbledon."

Dr. Richard Berger is a recognisable name on the tennis circuit after recently operating on both wrists of Juan Martin Del Potro as the Argentine takes a break for an unspecified period of time.

Missing Wimbledon may prove to be a big blow for the young British star as she was defending a large amount of rankings points after a marvellous fourth round performance last year. After climbing as high as 27th in the rankings Robson has dropped away, recently falling out of the top fifty and is currently 64th. Missing the next few months will most likely see Robson fall out of the top one hundred, as demonstrated by Heather Watson who missed a large portion of last year with glandular fever.

Published on SEaT Capital.

Ward Back To Winning Ways

James Ward opened his 2014 Sarasoto challenge with a comfortable 6-2 6-2 victory over the seventh seed Facundo Bagnis.

The Brit was in superb form as h brushed aside the Argentine world number 132. Winning his first match since Indian Wells qualifying, Ward broke Bagnis twice in each set to claim victory.

The British number three is playing in his first tournament since Britain's Davis Cup defeat to Italy in Naples a couple of weeks ago.

Ward bounced back from his singles defeats to Andreas Seppi and Fabio Fognini with his opening round victory in Sarasoto.

Ward has plenty of history with the second-tier tournament after he claimed the title in 2009, the first of his three career challenger titles.

Last year Ward also reached the second round before crashing out in three sets to Mischa Zverev. This year he will be seeking to progress further into the competition as he takes on the qualifier Antonio Veic.

Veic overcame a tricky opening round tie with Illya Marchenko, eventually prevailing 5-7 6-2 6-1. The Brit will also be seeking revenge after losing to Veic in the first round of last years Santiago Challenger in Chile.

Published on SEaT Capital.