Johanna Konta claimed her biggest scalp by beating Ekaterina Makarova at Eastbourne
Tuesday 23 June 2015 19:01, UK
British No 2 Johanna Konta is through to the third round of the AEGON Championship at Eastbourne after a shock straight sets victory over world No 8 Ekaterina Makarova.
The 24-year-old, who had previously never beaten any player within the world's top 10, looked confident throughout as she completed a comprehensive 6-2 6-4 victory over the Russian fourth seed inside an hour and a half of play.
After easing through the first set, Konta needed to show determination in the second as both players traded breaks until the Briton, who lives in Eastbourne, made the decisive break with the score at 4-4.
“I tried to just go for every ball and to make sure I ran as many balls down as possible as I knew she wasn’t going to give it to me,” Konta told Eurosport after the match.
“She is top 10 for a reason so I really had to play some of my best tennis out here and I managed to do that today, so I’m very happy about that.“
Konta, who competed for Australia before gaining British citizenship in 2012, is ranked 146th in the world but has been handed a wild card into Wimbledon which begins next Monday.
She will now play 14th seed Garbine Muguruza Blanco of Spain, who beat Slovenia's Polona Hercog 5-7 6-3 6-0, in the next round at Devonshire Park.
Fifth seed Carla Suarez Navarro was also eliminated from the tournament after a 6-1 7-5 defeat to Sloane Stephens.
The American was joined in the last 16 by eighth seed Karolina Pliskova, who claimed a 6-4 7-5 win over Casey Dellacqua, while 10th seed Andrea Petkovic also advanced with a 6-2 6-4 victory against Caroline Garcia.
