Johanna Konta will improve preparations ahead of the 2021 Wimbledon season by adding the Birmingham Classic, including the Nottingham Open.
Britain’s No.1 will face a challenge at the Edgbaston Priory Club – the Birmingham Classic venue – which will be held on June 12-20. But she will face challenging competition from top seed Elise Mertens and young American sensation Cori Gauff.
World number 20 and compatriot Heather Watson is already on the list of players who will enliven the WTA level 250 tournament which will be held at the Nottingham Tennis Center – the Nottingham Open venue – which will take place one week before the tournament in Birmingham.
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“Playing at home has always been a great experience for me, but coming back to grass in Birmingham will be even more special this time,” said Johanna Konta.
“We all know that right now is an unbelievably tough time and I really miss the British tennis fans. I can’t wait to get back there again. “
Apart from the host tennis player, a number of other reliable players will enliven the tournament in Birmingham, such as the Tunisian national, Ons Jabeur; runner-up Birmingham Classic, Donna Vekic; as well as Grand Slam singles champions Jelena Ostapenko and Svetlana Kuznetsova.
The defending champion of the Birmingham Classic is world number 1 Ashleigh Barty who defeated German national Julia Goerges in straight sets in the 2019 season. The 2020 edition had to be canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
At the Nottingham Open, 40-year-old Venus Williams will play in the tournament for the first time. The defending champion at Nottingham was Caroline Garcia who beat Vekic in the 2019 season final. The 2020 edition was canceled for the same reasons as the Birmingham Classic.
Meanwhile, Konta’s achievements in the 2021 season are still less convincing after of the six tournaments he played this season, he has not managed to make it to the quarterfinals once.
Konta’s best achievement was when he advanced to the third round of the Gippsland Trophy at Melbourne and Miami Open. At the Australian Open, he was even forced to withdraw from the second set of the first half. He last competed in the Italian Open, Rome and was immediately eliminated from the first round.
