Defending champ Angelique Kerber fights back

Angelique Kerber will face sixth seeded Carla Suarez Navarro in the quarterfinal later on Friday.

Angelique Kerber's only success since Australian Open victory in January has involved a title defence at Stuttgart in April.   -  Reuters

Defending champion Angelique Kerber made a typically tenacious comeback from a set down and a day's delay to reach the quarterfinals of the Wimbledon warm-up event in Birmingham on Friday.


She did it with a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 win over Daria Gavrilova, an improving young world number 50 from Australia who ended yesterday's rain-ruined schedule within two points of snatching the first set.

She duly did that on Friday, capturing Kerber's service game, which restarted with the titleholder 0-30 down.


"It was good to turn around the match after all the rain and a day later," said Kerber, whose body language showed how determined she was not to follow several other big names through the exit.

"It's always difficult to start again the next day so I am glad I found my rhythm again," she added. Earlier she told the crowd: "I love this tournament and I want to do well again."



The stormy conditions have made it among the most testing in the Birmingham grasscourt tournament's 35-year history. They also caused a logjam to the schedule which require Kerber to return for her quarterfinal later today.





Her patient 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-5) marathon win earned her a meeting with Kerber.

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