Billy Harris lost out in the semi-finals of the Lexus Surbiton Trophy against South Africa’s Lloyd Harris 6-4, 6-4 in an hour and 26 minutes.

After narrowly losing the opener the Briton had a nasty slip at the start of the second, which forced him to call for the trainer for some treatment on his hip.

Despite some obvious discomfort, Harris was able to continue and fought hard to stave off three break points, but at the fourth time of asking the South African capitalised on a forehand error from the Brit before serving out the match with an ace.

“I am feeling pretty good," he said. "It wasn’t as good as in the quarter-final. But I’ll take the positives from the wins I’ve had and onto the next one.

“This will probably move me to a career high. It’s been a good week, I lost here in qualifying last year and it’s always a strong tournament so I have got to be happy with a semi-final, even though I lost it.”

Harris finishes the week having reached his first ATP Challenger 125 semi-final as he now head to the Rothesay Open Nottingham as a wild card.

Harris will play will play 22-year-old Swiss star Leandro Riedi in Sunday's final after he defeated former Next Gen ATP Finals champion and sixth seed Brandon Nakashima 6-4, 3-6, 6-1.

Riedi will be aiming for his third ATP Challenger title this year having lifted silverware at Oeiras and Ottignies.

2022 Wimbledon semi-finalist and second seed Tatjana Maria will take on 2022 champion Alison van Uytvanck in Sunday's is the first player through to Sunday's Lexus Surbiton Trophy final.

Former world No.42 Maria beat Australia's Olivia Gadecki 6-4, 6-3 in an hour and 16 minutes to reach her first final of the season.

Meanwhile, 30-year-old Van Uytvanck put in an impressive performance to beat Harmony Tan 6-2, 6-4 to reach her second final in three years at Surbiton.

Van Uytvanck currently leads the head-to-head 3-1 with including their last match Limoges in 2021.

Britain's Julian Cash became the men's doubles champion in Surbiton for the second time in three years as he and Robert Galloway beat Nicolas Barrientos and Diego Hidalgo 6-4, 6-4.

Cash and Galloway have now won three titles together this season - including their first ATP trophy at Delray Beach.

Billy Harris is through to the Lexus Surbiton Trophy semi-final after winning a marathon battle against Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin.

Playing in his fifth ATP Challenger quarter-final of the season, Harris came back to defeat former world No.39 Mikhail Kukushkin 5-7, 7-6(5), 7-6(4) in three hours and 14 minutes.

The 29-year-old Brit has now won all four of the tie-breaks played in this tournament as he channelled the energy from British crowd to push over the line on Surbiton's Centre Court.

Kukushkin’s consistency and intensity made it a tricky afternoon for the Brit. The 16-time ATP Challenger title winner overturned 4-1 deficit to force a tie-break in the second and then led 4-1 in the decider.

The writing appeared to be on the wall with Kukushkin having break point to go 5-1 up, but the Briton clinching a pivotal hold gave him a route back into the match. He took his one and only chance to break back and saved his best serving for the final few points of an impressive display in the tie-break.

The British wild card will face South Africa's Lloyd Harris.

Elsewhere in the men’s draw, former Next Gen ATP Finals champion Brandon Nakashima and 22-year-old Swiss star Leandro Riedi set up a moth-watering semi-final contest.

Sixth seed Nakashima knocked out American compatriot Zachary Svajda 7-6(7), 6-3, while Riedi opened the day with a 6-4, 6-1 victory against Japan’s Shintaro Mochizuki.

Lexus Surbiton Trophy 2024: Semi-final line-up

Emily Appleton’s campaign in the women’s singles came to an end against 2022 champion Alison Van Uytvanck 6-4, 6-3.

It was a blistering start from Appleton – who broke on the Belgian’s opening two service games and had 15-40 at 4-1 up to complete a hat-trick of breaks.

However, the five-time WTA title-winner showed her experience and put in some gutsy serves – including a second serve ace – to stay within reach. It felt like a pivotal moment at the time and so it proved to be as the Belgian won seven straight games to clinch the set and break lead.

At 5-2 down in the second, Appleton battled hard to overturn one of her opponent’s breaks, but a couple of double faults from the Brit gave the former world No.37 the platform to finish the match.

Van Uytvanck’s impressive serving and baseline striking will have her as one of the favourites to have another run at the title as she moves on to play France’s Harmony Tan. Tan beat fourth seed Greet Minnen 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 to reach her first W100 semi-final of the season.

Meanwhile, Olivia Gadecki won the battle of the Aussies against Ajla Tomljanovic 6-4, 7-5, and second seed Tatjana Maria defeated Kimberly Birell 6-1, 6-4.

The first piece of silverware was awarded at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy today USA’s Emina Bektas and Serbia’s Aleksandra Krunic beat British duo Sarah Beth Grey and Tara Moore 6-1, 6-1 in the women’s doubles final.

Read more about the final here

The men’s doubles final tomorrow will see Britain’s Julian Cash going for his second Surbiton title alongside Robert Galloway as they take on Nicolas Barrientos and Diego Hidalgo.

Emily Appleton has extended her winning streak at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy to five matches, while Dan Evans, Harriet Dart and Naiktha Bains all came out on the losing side of three-set marathons and Katy Dunne exited in the round of 16.

Appleton recorded her biggest career win by ranking over world No.137 Taylah Preston in an hour and 19 minutes as she raced to a 6-3, 6-2 victory to book her spot in the quarter-finals.

The Brit broke the Australian four times across the match in yet another convincing display on the grass courts in South West London to set up a quarter-final meeting against former champion Alison van Uytvanck, after she knocked out British No.2 Dart.

The Brit put up a strong fight against the 2022 champion from Belgium but unfortunately lost out in the deciding set, losing 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

Dart recovered from a set and 3-1 down to level the contest to a set apiece but a late charge from Van Uytvanck saw the world No.397 break on the penultimate game before going on to secure the win.

Over in the men's draw second seed Evans narrowly missed out to Zachary Svajda 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3.

The British No.3 looked to be on the home straight as he edged ahead a set and a break before the American found the break back to force a second set tie-break. Evans caught a hold of a mini-break to put himself just two points away from the quarter-final before a controversial overrule by the umpire disrupted his rhythm, with Svajda ultimately snatching the set.

Into the decider and a late surge from the world No.123 saw him sprint to the finish line with a double break in his pocket to reach the final eight where he will face compatriot Brandon Nakashima, who defeated Joao Fonseca 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-0 earlier on.

Earlier in the day, Bains pushed also pushed  Australia's Olivia Gadecki - who is ranked 419 above her - to three sets but eventually fell short in the third to bow out in a 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 defeat. Meanwhile, Dunne was back in action against France's Harmony Tan but suffered a 6-1, 6-2 defeat to bow out in the round of 16. 

In the men's draw, South Africa's Lloyd Harris and Beibit Zhukayev also reached the final eight, while the women's draw saw second seed Tatjana Maria reach the quarter-finals after she overcame Rebecca Marino in three. She'll be joined by Ajla Tomljanovic, Greet Minnen and Kimberly Birrell.

Doubles

In the ATP Challenger draw, Julian Cash and Robert Galloway came through a tight quarter-final clash against all-American team Ryan Seggerman and Patrik Trhac 7-5, 7-6(12) to punch their ticket to the semi-finals.

Lloyd Glasspool and Yuki Bhambri sailed through their match against Anirudh Chandrasekar and Arjun Kadhe 6-2, 6-3.

Sarah Beth Grey and Tara Moore combined once again to defeat Viktorija Golubic and Celine Naef 7-6(5), 2-6, 13-11 to secure their space in the women's doubles final.

It wasn't to be today for Marcus Willis and Arthur Fery who lost out to Diego Hidalgo and Nicolas Barrientos 6-2, 3-6, 11-9 in the match-deciding tie-break, while Appleton and Lily Miyazaki lost out in a close contest between Emina Bektas and Aleksandra Krunic 7-6(6), 6-4.

Billy Harris became the first Brit to reach the quarter-finals at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy, while Dan Evans, Emily Appleton and Harriet Dart got their main draw campaigns off to a flying start.

However, defeats came for Paul Jubb, Kyle Edmund, Sarah Beth Grey, Francesca Jones and Sonay Kartal who all exited.

Evans returned to court on Wednesday to complete his battle against Adam Walton, with the second seed overcoming the world No.96, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6(8) to move into the second round.

With the scoreboard being locked at 6-6 in the deciding set, it was down to a match-deciding tie-break to settle the outcome. Despite the Australian being the first to gain the mini-break, it was the British No.3 who dug deep to turn it around - fending off one match point from Walton before closing out the match at the third time of asking.

Next up, Evans will take American Zachary Svajda.

Harris became the first British tennis player to reach the quarter-finals of the Lexus Surbiton Trophy following his 6-4, 7-6(4) win over Tristan Schoolkate.

With the British No.7 up a set to the good, Harris looked to sprint to the finish line in the second set tie-break as he nudged ahead to a 6-1 lead. However, a late surge from the Australian saw the pressure begin to pile on the Brit's shoulders before he eventually grasped a hold of the win on his fourth match point.

Harris will take on Mikhail Kukushkin for a place in the semi-finals after the Kazakhstani came back from a set down to defeat Britain's Jubb, winning 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Meanwhile, former world No.14 Edmund lost out in his second round encounter against rising star Joao Fonseca 6-2, 6-1, with the Brazillian racing to victory in just over an hour.

Over in the women's draw, Dart battled past British No.5 Lily Miyazaki, eventually prevailing in three sets, 6-2, 4-6, 6-0.

After Dart confidently sealed the opener, Miyazaki soon began to ask the question of her compatriot towards the end of the second, eventually finding a late breakthrough to even the tie. However, the British No.2 produced the perfect response - bouncing back to break Miyazaki three times in the decider to punch her ticket to the second round.

She'll face 2022 Lexus Surbiton Trophy champion Alison Van Utyvanck next.
 

World No.399 Appleton got the Brits off to a winning start as she glided to victory over Linda Fruhvirtova 6-4, 6-4.

Appleton picked up where she left off in the qualifying rounds against the Czech star, breaking Fruhvirtova on her opening service game of the match to easily clinch the first set. From there, the momentum sat firmly in the Brit's favour as she closed out the win on her second match point.

Appleton will now go on to face Australia's Taylah Preston in the next round.

It wasn't to be for three of our British women today with three players exiting in the first round of the main draw. Grey lost out to Canada's Rebecca Marino, 6-4, 6-3, while Jones suffered a 6-3, 6-4 defeat at the hands of fourth seed Greet Minnen and Kartal narrowly fell short against second seed and former Wimbledon semi-finalist Tatjana Maria 6-4, 7-6(1), 6-4.

Elsewhere, 2022 Next Gen ATP Finals champion Brandon Nakashima, Leandro Reidi and Japan's Shintaro Mochizuki reached the second round after coming through gruelling three-set battles. The women's draw saw former Wimbledon quarter-finalist Ajla Tomljanovic, Harmony Tan and Jule Niemeier all moved into the next sound in South West London.

Paul Jubb and Naiktha Bains got their Lexus Surbiton Trophy campaigns underway with the biggest wins of their careers, while Britain’s Katy Dunne sealed victory in her first grass court match since 2019.

Play was later suspended due to rain, with Dan Evans, Kyle Edmund and Sarah Beth Grey set to return to play their first round matches.

Qualifier Jubb beat top seed and world No.60 Alex Michelsen 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 in two hours to set up a second round match against Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin.

The 24-year-old Brit saved nine break points in the match and broke the American three times in the decisive third set to clinch his best career win by ranking.

World No.581 Bains caused another huge upset in knocking out third seed and former Rothesay Open Nottingham semi-finalist Viktorija Golubic 6-2, 7-5.

After breaking the world No.76 on three of her first five service games to take a set and a break lead, Bains eventually won five straight games to see out the win in an hour and 25 minutes.

This was the 26-year-old’s best win of her career to date and she’ll now play Olivia Gadecki in round two.

Next up on Centre Court was British wild card Dunne who defeated Canada’s Carol Zhao 6-4, 6-4 in her first match on grass since 2019.

Dunne returned brilliantly against the 28-year-old Canadian – winning 62% of points against her second serve and breaking four times in the match. The British star saved the best until last, firing off a backhand pass to set up three match points before Zhao fired wide to give her a break to love and the landmark win.

Elsewhere, former Wimbledon semi-finalist Denis Shapovalov lost out to Australia’s Aleksandar Vukic 6-3, 7-6(0). Vukic will be joined by Tristan Schoolkate, Beibit Zhukayev and Mackenzie McDonald in the second round.

In the women's draw Elizabeth Mandlik, Arina Rodionova and Taylah Preston all claimed first round wins. Preston upset top seed Lin Zhu 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.

Day two saw Billy Harris make a winning start to his Surbiton campaign, while Arthur Fery lost out and four British stars came through their final qualifying matches.

Harris kicked off the main draw action with a dominant performance against eighth seed and world No.92 Juncheng Shang, with the British No.7 earning a 6-3, 7-6(8) win.

The Brit - who is currently ranked world No.201 - dominated behind his serve, landing an impressive 80% of first serves and taking his break point opportunities to wrap up his fifth main draw win over a top 100 player in his career in an hour and 52 minutes.

Unfortunately, Fery missed out on joining Harris in the second round after losing to Kazakhstan's Mikhail Kukushkin 6-3, 6-2.

Over in qualifying, Kyle Edmund overcame fellow Brit Ryan Peniston 7-5, 6-3 to set up a first round clash against Joao Fonseca tomorrow.

Next up, it was over to  Paul Jubb who backed up his strong performance yesterday with another straight sets victory over Australia's Omar Jasika - winning 6-4, 6-4. He'll now go on to face rising American star Alex Michelsen on Tuesday.

However, 22-year-old Harry Wendelken lost out to former world No.47 Marc-Andrea Huesler in the second round of qualifying, with the Swiss star claiming a 7-6(2), 6-4 win over the Brit. Ben Jones also fell short against Alex Bolt, after being defeated 6-4, 7-6(3).

Elsewhere, Switzerland's Leandro Riedi and Japanese stars Shintaro Mochizuki and Sho Shimabukuro also reached the second round.

Women's

In the women's event, two British hopefuls will continue their quest for the title after booking their spot to the qualifiers.

24-year-old Emily Appleton became the first Brit to book her spot in the main draw of the W100 event after she defeated Canada's Marina Stakusic 7-6(7), 6-2, while Naiktha Bains came out on top in a hard-fought battle against Bulgaria's Lia Karatancheva in two hours and seven minutes.

It wasn't meant to be for wild card qualifier Amelia Rajecki fell put up a strong fight against Olivia Gadecki but eventually came out on the losing side with a 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-1 defeat.

In the doubles main draw, Harriet Dart and Belgium's Greet Minnen eased past all-British duo Alicia Barnett and Freya Christie 6-3, 6-3 before Sarah Beth Grey and Tara Moore joined forces to edge Jessika Ponchet and Bibiane Schoofs in the match deciding tie-break, 6-3, 5-7, 10-7.

The 2024 Lexus Surbiton Trophy is here and it was a stacked day for the Brits competing in the qualifying stages.

Victories came for Ryan Peniston, Kyle Edmund, Paul Jubb, Ben Jones and Harry Wendelken who have all reached the second round qualifying and will compete for a spot in the main draw tomorrow.

Peniston clinched a convincing 6-3, 6-1 win over Australia's Luke Saville, while Edmund defeated Li Tu 6-1, 7-6(4) and Wendelken dispatched Dane Sweeny 6-1, 6-3.

Jubb came out on top in an all British battle against Charles Broom, with the 24-year-old triumphing 6-2, 6-4 in an hour and 24 minutes.

Meanwhile Jones had to dig deep to come back from a set down against Marc Polmans - eventually prevailing 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.

It wasn't mean to be for Dan Little, Giles Hussey, Hamish Stewart, Aidan McHugh and Will Jansen who all suffered defeat in the first round of qualifying.