Evans in second round as Bedene retires

Dan Evans progressed to the second round of the Austrian Open after former Great Britain team-mate Aljaz Bedene retired.

Evans was in a strong position, leading 6- 3 4-5, when the Slovenian called time on the match after suffering a right thigh injury.

Bedene, who changed allegiance from Slovenia to Britain and then back again, suffered the problem early in the match, but could not continue.

There was not much in it between the two, with Evans, who made the semi-finals in Antwerp last week, claiming the first set with a solitary break before fending off several break-back points in the next game.

The second set was on serve before Bedene retired at a curious time, having just won a game which would have left Evans serving to stay in the set.

There will be no complaints from British No 1 Evans, who will now play Jurij Rodionov in the second round after the young Austrian stunned Denis Shapovalov in the first round.

CLOSURES WARNING

The Lawn Tennis Association is warning that at least a third of community indoor tennis centres in Britain could close without further financial backing from the government.

The LTA supports a network of 54 centres, which have faced a substantial loss in income because of measures imposed to try to curb the coronavirus pandemic.

The government last week announced a £100 million package of support for public leisure facilities but the LTA believes a lot more is needed.

Chief executive Scott Lloyd said: “This money will be spread thinly across a huge range of publicly owned sport and leisure facilities.”