Francesca Jones was beaten by Talia Gibson in the first round of the Nottingham Open after holding two match points in the third set. The GB player lost 6-3 5-7 7-6 (7-4) on Monday, and the result ended her opening match at centre court with no passage through to the next round.
Nottingham Open centre court
Jones took the match to a third set, but Gibson closed it out in the tiebreak 7-4. The scoreline tells the story of a match that swung late: Jones moved within sight of victory, then missed the chance to finish it before Gibson recovered.
Australian Talia Gibson had already shown form before Nottingham. She won the Birmingham Open doubles title last week alongside Janice Tjen, then carried that run into this first-round win.
Qinwen Zheng on Monday
Qinwen Zheng also won on day one, beating Maria Sakkari 4-6 7-6 (7-1) 6-4. The Olympic champion joined the opening-day winners as the Nottingham Open began, while the men's event at Queen's also got under way on Monday.
For Jones, the return is simple: a first-round exit after two match points in the third set. For Gibson, the finish was the stronger one, and the tiebreak decided what had stayed tight through three sets.
