Johanna konta

Great Britain’s hopes of reaching April’s inaugural Fed Cup finals week suffered a double blow on Friday. Johanna Konta told reporters that she will not participate in the competition at all this year, while Katie Boulter also expressed doubts over the upcoming tie in Bratislava. Konta and Boulter both performed brilliantly in the team event last season. Should neither be available, British captain Anne Keothavong will face some tricky selectorial decisions ahead of the Slovakia match in three weeks’ time. Speaking in Melbourne on Friday, Konta explained that her decision is connected to the chronic knee pain that has restricted her to just a single competitive match in the last four-and-a-half months. “It [the knee] is definitely part of it,” said Konta, who will open her Australian Open campaign on Monday against Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur. “It’s an Olympic year. I’m looking to schedule things for the longevity of my body and to be able … [Read more...] about Great Britain handed Fed Cup blow as Johanna Konta rules herself out

The tricky thing about this plague-ridden US Open is that no-one – with the possible exception of Novak Djokovic – knows how well they themselves are playing. Let alone how well anyone else is playing. Johanna Konta’s three-set exit at the hands of Romania’s Sorana Cirstea was a case in point, because it seemed to come out of nowhere. This wasn’t a capitulation on Konta’s part. She smacked 40 clean winners and scrambled for every ball she could reach. But Cirstea – the world No77 – was so good that she could have been impersonating her absent compatriot, reigning Wimbledon champion Simona Halep. At 30, Cirstea has been on the tour for an age, stacking up more than 500 professional matches. And she is the sort of player who can be a nightmare when she is on, because she takes big, swift swings at the ball and aims for the lines on almost every shot. It’s just that her high-risk game doesn’t come off very often. The last … [Read more...] about Johanna Konta lets strong lead slip to suffer second-round exit at US Open

What promised to be a straightforward win for Johanna Konta turned into a medical drama. The British No 1 suffered a heat-related collapse in the middle of a draining three-set match against Tsvetana Pironkova, yet still came back to win. Everyone around Court 13 must have thought we were looking at a forfeit when Konta collapsed at the end of the second set. The medical team at Flushing Meadows arrived and covered her in ice bags, and play was halted for the best part of 15 minutes before Konta finally decided that she was fit to continue. Had this been a full-body cramp, as seemed likely in the early moments, then there would have been no coming back. Konta would have been best advised to make a dash to the hospital for emergency rehydration. … [Read more...] about US Open 2016: Johanna Konta fights heat collapse to pull off miracle win in New York

JO KONTA was in a state of shock and close to tears as she exited the Australian Open with a sore abdominal muscle. Britain’s leading female ace had promised to go far in Melbourne and had a favourable section of the draw but those dreams were dashed on the second day by an unfortunate injury retirement. The 29-year-old called for a medical timeout shortly before winning the first set on her serve against Slovenian qualifier Kaja Juvan. The No.13 seed required a massage on the floor of Court 15 with the physiotherapist rubbing around her left hip and lower abdomen. Backstage, she had the painful area taped up. And she was forced to call it quits in the second set with the scoreline at 6-4 0-2 given she was losing strength and power in her serve. Three double faults in the space of four points suggested her body had started to break down. It is the second year in a row she has gone out of the Aussie Open in the first round . Konta said: “Well, I pulled my ab, … [Read more...] about Jo Konta close to tears as Brit forced out of Australian Open in first round after suffering abdominal injury

As women's team tennis begins a new era this weekend at the revamped Fed Cup, some appear to be taking things more seriously than others.  For instance, the US announced a power-house line-up last week that will be the envy of the world, not least their Latvian opponents. It includes twenty-three time grand slam champion Serena Williams, who is 15-0 in singles at the Fed Cup; in-form teen prodigy Coco Gauff, with a shot at becoming the youngest American since Jennifer Capriati to play in a Fed Cup; newly-crowned Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin; world number 18 and Wimbledon quarter-finalist Alison Riske; and nine-time doubles grand slam champion Bethanie Mattek-Sands.  Meanwhile, Great Britain cannot get Johanna Konta or Katie Boulter - their two most valuable players last season - on board for their own qualifier match in Slovakia. Captain Anne Keothavong was thus left with only one top 100 option in Heather Watson, who she selected alongside Harriet Dart, Katie … [Read more...] about Lure of the Olympics could cost below strength Great Britain a shot at Fed Cup progression