MATCH POINTS
No.6 seed Ajla Tomljanovic, a four-time runner-up on the WTA Tour, kicks off her campaign for a maiden title against qualifier Danielle Lao, whom she has beaten in four out of four matches dating back to 2009 - all in US ITF or 125K events. The pair's first meeting was in the qualifying of the Redding W25 event in 2009, which Tomljanovic won 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, and their most recent was in the second round of the 2017 Honolulu 125K, taken again by the Australian 2-6, 6-3, 6-1. Lao is searching for her first WTA main draw win since defeating Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in Québec City on her debut in 2016.
2015 finalist Monica Niculescu ends a two-month injury hiatus this week, returning to action for the first time since retiring against Olga Danilovic in the final qualifying round of Rabat with a left leg injury. The Romanian takes on last year's Mallorca champion, No.9 seed Tatjana Maria, for the first time.
No.2 seed and 2017 champion Donna Vekic takes on 2018 quarterfinalist Dalila Jakupovic for the second time today. The pair previously met in the semifinals of an ITF W25 event in Lagos in 2011, with a 15-year-old Vekic winning 6-3, 2-6, 7-6(1) to make her second ITF W25 final one week after the first, also in the Nigerian capital. The Croat would lose both of those finals - the first to Elina Svitolina and the second to Tamaryn Hendler.
2017 Wimbledon semifinalist and 2009 Birmingham champion Magdalena Rybarikova compiled just a 4-8 win-loss record in 2019 through Roland Garros - but a return to grass has already paid dividends for the Slovak, who comes into Nottingham fresh off reaching the Surbiton ITF W100 final last week, where she lost to fellow grass-lover Alison Riske.
ORDER OF PLAY
CENTRE COURT (not before 3pm)
Maria SAKKARI (GRE) [4] vs Heather WATSON (GBR)
Caroline GARCIA (FRA) [1] vs [WC] Naiktha BAINS (GBR)
Kristina MLADENOVIC (FRA) [8] vs [Q] Magdalena FRECH (POL)
COURT 1 (not before 3pm)
Monica NICULESCU (ROU) vs Tatjana MARIA (GER) [9]
[Q] Tara MOORE (GBR) vs [WC] Maia LUMSDEN (GBR)
Jennifer BRADY (USA) vs ZHANG Shuai (CHN) [7]
Astra SHARMA (AUS) vs Magdalena RYBARIKOVA (SVK)
COURT 2 (not before 3pm)
Bernarda PERA (USA) vs [WC] Katie SWAN (GBR)
Ivana JOROVIC (SRB) vs [Q] Ellen PEREZ (AUS)
Sara SORRIBES TORMO (ESP) vs Shelby ROGERS (USA)
INDOOR COURT 1 (not before 1pm)
[Q] Elena-Gabriela RUSE (ROU) vs Evgeniya RODINA (RUS) [10]
[LL] Chloe PAQUET (FRA) vs [LL] Ankita RAINA (IND)
INDOOR COURT 2 (not before 1pm)
Dalila JAKUPOVIC (SLO) vs Donna VEKIC (CRO) [2]
Ajla TOMLJANOVIC (AUS) [6] vs [Q] Danielle LAO (USA)
INDOOR COURT 4 (not before 1pm)
[Q] Liudmila SAMSONOVA (RUS) vs Viktorija GOLUBIC (SUI)
Harriet DART (GBR) vs Vera LAPKO (BLR)
