Katie Boulter: Two-time defending champion loses in Nottingham Open

Two-time defending champion Katie Boulter’s run at the Nottingham Open was ended in a dramatic loss to American McCartney Kessler at the quarter-final stage.

Against the world number 42 Boulter found herself 4-2 up in the deciding set but lost 6-3 3-6 6-4 after two hours and nine minutes.

British number two Boulter had won the past two Nottingham Open titles and was on a 12-match winning run at the Wimbledon warm-up tournament.

She played well in the first set but took just one of 11 break points, while 25-year-old Kessler converted two of her five.

In the second set Boulter wrestled back control, not conceding a single break point.

But in the decider, despite being two games away from the semi-finals, she lost four straight games to be defeated at Nottingham for the first time in three years.

Kessler will face Rebecca Sramkova in the last four on Saturday after the unseeded Slovak beat Czech world number 30 Linda Noskova 3-6 6-4 6-4.

Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska will play Polish sixth seed Magda Linette in Saturday’s other semi-final.

Yastremska advanced with a 6-3 7-6 (8-6) win over Canadian fifth seed Leylah Fernandez, while Linette beat second seed Clara Tauson 6-2 7-5.