Konta through to quarter-finals in Nottingham

PARIS, Jun 15 (REUTERS) Top seed Johanna Konta made short work of doubles partner Yanina Wickmayer to reach the quarter-finals of the Aegon Open grasscourt tournament in Nottingham today. Konta, the world number eight who will carry Britain’s hopes into Wimbledon along with Andy Murray, won 6-4 6-1 against the Belgian Wickmayer and will face Australian Ashleigh Barty next. Konta, surprisingly beaten in the French Open first round by world number 109 Hsieh Su-Wei, coped better with Nottingham’s windy conditions as she forged 4-0 ahead in the opening set. Wickmayer briefly threatened to make a match of it but Konta was relatively untroubled. “I was able to deal with the conditions well. I really enjoy playing in front of this home crowd,” she said. REUTERS