Tennis

Oudin's Aegon defense ends quickly

Published Jun. 10, 2013 1:00 a.m. ET

share

facebookxredditlink

foxsports

Melanie Oudin's defense of her Aegon Classic title lasted only 57 minutes Monday, with the American losing 6-3, 6-1 to Croatian qualifier Ajla Tomljanovic in the first round.

The 80th-ranked Oudin struggled in cold and windy conditions in Birmingham, central England, failing to handle the dominant serve of Tomljanovic. The Croat will play top-seeded Kirsten Flipkens.

Tomljanovic says ''my serve was a big factor. I felt really comfortable returning and that meant I could go for more on my serve.''

Oudin beat Jelena Jankovic in straight sets in last year's final of the grass-court tournament, winning her only WTA title.

Eighth-seeded Maria Joao Koehler, No. 10 Hsieh Su-wei and No. 11 Ayumi Morita were also eliminated in the first round.

share