American Taylor Fritz gave fans at the Aegon Trophy in Ilkley evidence of the talent that saw him named ATP Star of Tomorrow in 2016 for being the youngest player to finish in the top 100 as he knocked out fourth seed Go Soeda 6-3, 6-4. Fritz, 19, was fortunate to start his match as the day cooled off in this picturesque grass court venue on the road to Wimbledon.
While other players on the men’s and women’s tours headed to Queen’s and Birmingham, there was plenty of ATP and WTA action at Ilkley Tennis club which opened a new £2.5million facility last year, providing a modern back drop for the grass courts that are set in the Wharfe Valley, bordered by Ilkley Moor and the Cow & Calf Rocks. It now has a key role in the expanded grass court section of the tennis season having been given Challenger status on the men’s tour in 2015 and also running an ITF women’s grass court event at the same time.
Providing the grass courts for the players is the responsibility of head groundsman Richard Lord who started playing at the club as a 12-year-old and has been in charge of the courts for the last ten years. As we spoke, willow pollen constantly drifted over the area from the river banks and the Wharfe plays a big role in the life of Lord’s courts. He takes water directly from the river to irrigate the grounds but being so close also has its drawbacks. Twice in recent years the river has flooded the courts but thankfully, it deposited very little sediment before receding back to its normal state.
Lord sat on Wimbledon’s Centre Court during The Championships for the first time last year and was able to see the most famous grass court being used by Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Stan Wawrinka. Ensuring the courts being used meet Wimbledon standards is vital, and that is why Ilkley’s grass was changed.
Lord explained: "The grass has changed and we have the whole top layer removed in 2014 just as they do every year at Wimbledon. We had it reseeded with the similar blend to the one they use at Wimbledon which means it is more pure rye grass now and it does take a little bit more looking after with feed which makes it a bit more challenging. There was a seminar at Edgbaston last year and I have also been to one at Wimbledon a couple of months ago and it is about sharing ideas and asking questions."
With temperatures in the hitting 30 degrees Celsius this week, the courts are receiving a good soak for 30 minutes after play each night with the river water and they will be in perfect condition for Tuesday’s play which involves singles matches for Austria’s Jurgen Melzer, the former world No8, and Marcus Willis, who made such a dramatic impact on Wimbledon last year, taking on Federer on Centre Court in the second round.
Britain’s Brydan Klein was sick at the side of the court at the start of the third set as he battled against Slovakia’s Norbert Gombos who won 1-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 while in the women’s event third seed Jasmine Paolini, of Itay, beat America’s Daniele Rose Collins 6-1, 7-5.
At the Aegon Classic in Birmingham, British No.2 Naomi Broady delivered one of the biggest wins of her career with a 7-6(3), 6-0 victory over world No.39 Alize Cornet. Broady’s impressive win sets up a potential second round with two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova.
“I was really trying to mix the ball up a lot today, use my slice and then hit the next ball as hard as I could, just to keep mixing up the pace and not give her a rhythm,” said world No.111 Broady.
“Alize is great mover, she’s a very consistent player, so I knew if I played with a lot of rhythm then I would be playing into the way she wants to play. I tried to stay as far away from her game style as I could.”
Heather Watson gave world number five Elina Svitolina a scare, taking the second set only to see her opponent respond strongly to take the match 6-2, 5-7, 6-3. Eighth seed Barbora Strycova, of the Czech Republic, defeated Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva 6-3, 6-3. Japan’s Naomi Osaka needed three sets to get past America’s Lauren Davis 6-1, 2-6, 7-6(4).
