From the moment the first point of the day was played on centre court, I knew this day was going to be one of mixed fortunes. British tennis' rising star Heather Watson opened proceedings with a double fault, had her serve subsequently broken and went on to lose the match to big hitting Safarova. Between that first and last point were some incredible rallies, a tense tie-break and some encouraging signs that Heathers star is still in an upward trajectory. It just wasn't her day to cause an upset.
There was certainly no room for dark clouds on this pleasantly scorching day. Grateful for packing my factor 30, centre court was definitely the place to be as Marion Bartoli showed her creditentials as defending champ by sweeping aside Canadian Wozniak in straight sets. Meanwhile on court one, another British hope was downed as the feisty Laura Robson exited Devonshire Park at the hands of another former Eastbourne champ, Makarova. Two down, but with a host of other Brits in action I felt sure that there would be some good news in amongst the sad farewells bidded so far.
I like to the think of the Aegon International as the home of the underdog. The tournament where the leading lights of tennis are temporarily dimmed by the triumphant tryers. Already on the opening few days of play, we have seen Wozniacki, Kvitova, Gasquet and Radwanska exit through the big gate next to the Towner. Today was another day for top seed casualties. He may be 19, gutsy and capable of unsettling the big guns at grand slams, but Bernie Tomic, timidly departed centre court with his antipodean tail between his legs. We were treated to some exquisitely crafted shots on both sides, but in the end Fognini outfoxed the wily Aussie in a tense third set. Special credit must go to the umpire who stole the show with his eccentric delivery of the scores and sporadic fussing over the positioning of the ball girls. Hilarious.
Over on court one, everyones favourite Cypriot (next to Satvros Flatley) Marcos Baghdatis also met an untimely end to his Eastbourne hopes, as he was ousted by wild card Darcis in a topsy turvy three setter. The keen eyed will have spotted by now that none of the poster hoarding superstars has survived into the quarterfinals, but that in no way takes the shine off what has been an incredible tournament so far.
Away from the court, but reaching into the stands has been the heavenly scent of the ever popular barbeque which is well complimented by a mandatory jug of Pimms, which must be doing incredible business down the far end of the practice courts. If you're in need of a break from the workout your neck will be getting following the little fuzzy yellow thing, I found the lawns around court two a perfect place to relax have a picnic and enjoy the medley of champagne corks popping, tennis balls being thwacked and polite ooh's and ahhs accompanying the action on the outside courts.
For me the highlight of the day was witnessing the very welcomed late entrant, Andy Roddick, to give us all a masterclass in grass court tennis. At 29 he is thought of as a veteran, having been in three Wimbledon finals, won a US open title and notched up dozens of ATP tour titles, but watching him in action, there's still a freshness and indeed a determination to succeed on his favourite surface. For example, his serve spits and fizzes like an angry open fire. His focus on every single point shows that he still means business and in his own words "winning's fun and losing sucks". His straight sets victory showed an appreciative centre court that he's not here just for a bit of pre-Wimbledon practice. My money's on him to take the mens title. On the womens side, I think it's very open and will most likely reap a fresh name on the coveted trophy. I'm looking forward to finding out if my predictions are correct on the all important finals day.
