The Australian won the French Open a week and a half ago but is much more at home on grass than clay and came through a tricky opener against Donna Vekic in Birmingham 6-3, 6-4.

After the highs of reaching the French Open semi-finals earlier this month, Jo Konta was brought back down to earth with a second round exit at the Nature Valley Classic in Birmingham.

World No 2 Rafael Nadal has entered next week's Aspall Tennis Classic in Hurlingham to get some grass court play under his belt ahead of next month's Wimbledon Championships.

Murray revealed on Thursday that French Open champion Barty was one of the players he had approached about playing mixed doubles at Wimbledon but she rejected the opportunity.

Australian star Ash Barty is just two wins away from becoming world number one after she defeated Venus Williams to reach the semi-finals of the Birmingham Classic. 

Ashleigh Barty is one match away from becoming the first Australian to be crowned women's world number one in 43 years after progressing to the final of the Nature Valley Classic.

KIERAN GILL AT EASTBOURNE: Konta triumphed 6-4, 7-6 in one hour and 37 minutes at the Nature Valley International. British No 1 is competing at her final tournament before Wimbledon.

The 32-year-old Serb has not played a competitive match since losing in the semi-final of the French Open this month, preferring to spend some family time in Serbia.

Serena Williams (pictured), 37, snubbed Barty, 23, at her pre-Wimbledon press conference on Saturday. Barty rose to number one after winning Birmingham Classic and French Open.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: There is only one question that leaves the effervescent Marketa Vondrousova struggling for an answer. Which does she prefer, buying shoes or hitting drop shots?

When Serena Williams returned to the women's tour early last spring the mission was simple: to win a 24th Grand Slam and to do so as a proud parent.

As the top women's seed, Ashleigh Barty, the world No 1 and newly crowned French Open champion, has every right to feel there is a weight of expectation on her shoulders.

Barty, chasing back-to-back grand slams following her French Open success last month, beat the Belgian 6-1 6-3 to advance to the third round on Thursday.

Ash Barty took less than an hour to defeat Alison Van Uytvanck at Wimbledon on Thursday and addressed a snub from Serena Williams made earlier during a press conference.

The American made light work of her Spanish opponent to reach the quarter-finals on Tuesday, progressing with a 6-2, 6-2 victory on Court One. She will now play fellow American Alison Riske.

She produced one of the great final performances at the All England Club, committing three unforced errors in a 6-2, 6-2 win over Serena Williams that she described as the best match of her life.

When Queenslander Ash Barty won her first grand slam tennis title at the French Open in June she celebrated by going out for beer and steak. 

Ashleigh Barty is poised to crown her phenomenal season by becoming the first Australian woman to ever top the year-ending tennis rankings.

The world No 6 said in a video posted Thursday on Twitter that 'Darren will be back by my side next season' and that she 'can't wait to finish what we started.'

French Open champion Barty, who had been beaten twice by Kvitova in Australia earlier this year, fired nine aces and converted three of six break points to win the encounter.

Japan's Naomi Osaka fought back from a set down to beat Australian world number one Ash Barty 3-6 6-3 6-2 in the final of the China Open in Beijing on Sunday.

Former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone has been given the all clear following a 'tough battle' with cancer, the 39-year-old Italian has said.

Ashleigh Barty's coach can pinpoint the moment when the Australian morphed from good to a great.

The Canadian sounded a positive note at the end of what he freely admits has been 'the most challenging month in my 35 year career in sport', with further cancellations also coming on Friday.

The Tour de France and French Open have come under doubt after ministers stated they would only be held if fans can attend. Events in France gathering 5,000 people have been banned until September

Emmanuel Macron and Justin Trudeau were pictured sharing a warm embrace in Paris today, as they met to discuss a new EU-Canada trade deal. 

Justin Trudeau met with Donald Trump in the Oval Office to talk trade before receiving a much warmer welcome from Nancy Pelosi, who settled her basketball bet with the Canadian prime minister. 

AOC's glib, sneering tweet struck me as particularly inappropriate given that she is herself arguably the least 'qualified' member of the House of Representatives in US political history.

Trump took to Twitter to defend Trudeau after a Canadian critic accused him of being 'submissive' to the president after 'trash-talking' him to the press. 

'The Mooch' claims Trump is a 'malignant narcissist' who 'needs the spotlight at all times,' and says Australia's PM should keep a low profile around him, like Trudeau, if he wants to be successful.

A coach carrying the travelling press pack drove into the jet's wing after the Prime Minister touched down in Victoria, British Columbia for the first rally of his tour on Wednesday night.

TOM LEONARD: Accused of racism and the most shameless hypocrisy, Justin Trudeau risks being turfed out of office after a first term plagued by scandals and embarrassment.

At a town hall meeting in Saskatoon on Thursday night, Trudeau faced tough questions about the imbroglio despite the crowd being stocked with supporters from his ruling Liberal Party.

Donald Trump said he was 'surprised' at the number of times Justin Trudeau has donned blackface but admitted he hoped he would not get asked about the Canadian prime minister.

New Forest West MP Sir Desmond Swayne (pictured) said in a blog post that he wouldn't do it again - but only because of the 'trouble' of getting clean again.'

Deanna Brown Thomas, 50, said her late father would not have been insulted by Desmond Swayne's actions (pictured) during the party in Hampshire seven years ago.

Trudeau works as a communications professor at the college in Denton, Texas, and has done since 2005. He was investigated in 2018

Donald Trump used a NATO meeting Tuesday with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to push Speaker Nancy Pelosi to pass the USMCA trade deal.

Last night's glittering NATO reception at Buckingham Palace saw the Duchess of Cambridge, 37, chatting in animated fashion to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Amid Tory fears ties to the US president could be an electoral liability, Boris Johnson also played down their warm relationship saying he gets on well with 'all sorts of leaders'.

President Trump was said to have made remarks about Justin Trudeau and Emmanuel Macron to more than a dozen United Nations ambassadors in a closed-doors meeting at the White House.

The eight-bedroom gated estate on Vancouver Island, Canada, boasts two beaches and views across the peninsula from the four acre property.

Insisting 'the best British experts' should be involved in the investigation into the incident in Tehran, Boris Johnson said last night: 'The loss of life is a tragedy.

Canada's finance minister says its government has not yet decided if it will cover the $1.7 million it will cost to provide security for Harry and Meghan after the couple decided to move to North America.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau outlined advice about people wearing masks during an address. Trudeau said they could protect people from 'breathing or speaking moistly' on others.

In the ongoing absence through illness of Boris Johnson he joined leaders including US president Donald Trump to discuss how to reduce the economic impact of the pandemic.

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage insisted 'No Deal is the best deal' and told the Boris Johnson it would be a 'historic mistake' to rehash Mrs May's Withdrawal Agreement - minus the backstop.

The Brexit Party leader hammered the PM after his comments during a visit to Dublin to see Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, having earlier said: 'Let's work together, let's get Brexit done.'

HARRY COLE: Downing Street killed Nigel Farage's overtures for an electoral pact with the Tories stone dead last week, branding the Brexit stalwart and his millionaire backer Arron Banks 'not fit and proper'.

He lashed out at the opposition leader in his the conference debut as a Liberal Democrat in Bournemouth, and branded Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage 'peddlers of hate and division.