Gagliardi ends losing streak
Switzerland's Emmanuelle Gagliardi finally found something to smile about on Monday when she ended a run of five first round defeats on the WTA tennis tour.
The 24-year-old Genevan pulled off a surprise straight sets win (6-4, 6-4) over American world number 44 Kristina Brandi during the first round of the Italian Open in Rome.
Gagliardi, whose poor recent form has seen her drop to 112th in the world, faces another tough challenge in the second round, where her opponent will be the sixth-seeded Belgian Kim Klijsters.
Elsewhere, Switzerland’s Miroslava Vavrinec is through to the second round of the Benelux Open WTA Tour event in Antwerp after beating the sixth-seeded Roda Tulyaganova, from Uzbekistan, 6-2, 6-3.
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