World No 7 wins 6-3 7-6 in Aegon Classic opener
Tuesday 20 June 2017 15:26, UK
Britain's world No 7 Johanna Konta battled to a 6-3 7-6 victory over Ukraine's Lesia Tsurenko in her opening match at the Aegon Classic in Birmingham on Tuesday.
Konta, runner-up at the Nottingham WTA event on Sunday, won the opening set 6-3 against world No 34 Tsurenko, but the Ukrainian fought back to go a break up in the second.
The British hope for a first women's Wimbledon title since Virginia Wade in 1977 was a game away from losing the second set but broke back at 5-3 and eventually took the tiebreak 8-6.
Konta will face thee winner of the all-American match between Coco Vandeweghe and Christina McHale.
Two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova got her grass season off to a positive start with a 6-2 6-3 win over compatriot Tereza Smitkova.
Kvitova, Wimbledon winner in 2011 and 2014, is on the comeback trail after a lengthy absence following a knife attack at her home in the Czech Republic in December.
The 27-year-old's only appearance so far this year was at the French Open where she lost in the second round.
Kvitova took one hour and 23 minutes to beat 22-year-old Smitkova, who is ranked 167th in the world.
The Czech will face Britain's Naomi Broady in the next round after she beat France's Alize Cornet on Monday.
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