Brit Jones defies odds to make AO main draw

Great Britain’s Francesca Jones has qualified for the main draw of the Australian Open after beating Lu Jia-jing 6-0 6-1 in convincing style in Dubai.

The 20-year-old from Leeds took the first set without dropping a game.

And she was dominant in her serve, winning 90 per cent of points with Lu unable to fight back.

The British No. 5 went into the game ranked 241, 40 places below Lu, but fully deserved her place on the plane to Melbourne.

Jones’s progress is impressive because she was born with a congenital condition that means she only has three fingers and a thumb on each hand, three toes on one foot and four toes on the other.

Peter Rowe

Recent Posts

Davis Cup Final to mark Nadal goodbye to tennis

Rafael Nadal will bring down the curtain on his career next month as he plays his…

4 weeks ago

Wimbledon lowers the boom on human linecalling

Wimbledon on Wednesday brought an end to human linecalling at the most traditional of the…

4 weeks ago

Djokovic rolls Cobolli as Shanghai fights to restore order

Novak Djokovic returned to action after waiting tow days to play as the rain-hit Shanghai…

4 weeks ago

Innocent umpiring error screws Stan in Shanghai

Stan Wawrinka may have been inadvertently short-changed during Monday's third-round loss at the Shanghai Masters…

4 weeks ago

Sinner sweeps Fritz to win US Open

Jannik Sinner schooled Taylor Fritz 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 to win his second Grand Slam title…

2 months ago

Sabalenka wins Open title for Grand Slam hat-trick

Aryana Sabalenka completed a Grand Slam title hat-trick on Saturday as she fought from 5-3…

2 months ago