Johanna Konta forced to retire from her qualifying second-round clash at the Sydney International with Ekaterina Alexandrova
Sunday 6 January 2019 17:45, UK
Heather Watson booked her place in the Hobart International main draw with victory over Isabelle Wallace.
Having already dispatched Naiktha Bains in the first qualifying round, the British number two advanced after securing a 6-4 6-4 win against 22-year-old Australian Wallace.
In what looked like it could be a back-and-forth encounter, with both players dropping their opening serves, Watson settled her nerves to immediately break back in the third game and secure the opening set in 45 minutes.
The 26-year-old, who won the 2015 title and reached the semi-final last year, failed to take advantage of two match points at 5-4 but dug in to serve out for the match.
Quoted on the tournament's website, Watson said: "When I come to Hobart I'm always feeling really positive and excited about the tournament. When I'm happy, I play better. I'm very happy here and I think it shows in my results."
At the Sydney International, Johanna Konta was forced to retire from her qualifying second-round clash with Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Konta, who is understood to have suffered a neck injury, was 4-1 down in the first set when she brought an end to the match after just 18 minutes.
