Kostyuk, Boulter lead raft of seeded upsets in Eastbourne

A host of upsets opened Day 3 at the Rothesay International, with four seeded players falling in the second round after receiving byes.

Marta Kostyuk returned to complete a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 defeat of No.7 Barbora Krejcikova, a match that had been delayed due to darkness at a set all the previous day; and wildcard Katie Boulter thrilled the home crowd by pulling off a 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 comeback against No.4 Karolina Pliskova.

Elsewhere, Kirsten Flipkens continued to find form on her farewell tour. The Belgian, who will retire from singles competition after Wimbledon, took out compatriot and No.13 seed Elise Mertens 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 for her first Top 30 win since Moscow 2019. Flipkens' fellow qualifier Lesia Tsurenko completed a quartet of upsets, beating No.9 seed Elena Rybakina 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 to notch her first Top 25 win since Brisbane 2019.

Highlights: Flipkens d. Mertens | Tsurenko d. Rybakina

How Kostyuk upset Krejcikova: No.79-ranked Kostyuk, 19, played with customary panache from the off, going for bold and low-percentage winners down the line early in rallies. However, for a set-and-a-half it was Krejcikova's more controlled play that had the upper hand.

The Czech had been sidelined for three months this year due to an elbow injury, only returning at Roland Garros - where her title defense ended in the first round against Diane Parry, and where she suffered another setback in the form of Covid. But leading 6-4, 3-4, she had yet to drop serve, and indeed had only faced one break point.

But Kostyuk finally captured the Krejcikova serve after five deuces to lead 5-3, and went from strength to strength from then on. At 4-4 in the third set, perhaps the best game of the match also went Kostyuk's way after a multi-deuce tussle, as the Ukrainian found a marvellous pass to take her fifth break point of the game. She also found more flair to convert her second match point by lofting a lob over Krejcikova's head.

The result was Kostyuk's second victory in as many meetings with Krejcikova, having also won 6-3, 5-7, 6-0 at 2018 Australian Open qualifying. It was also Kostyuk's second career Top 20 win, following her upset of Garbiñe Muguruza at Roland Garros last year.

How Boulter upset Pliskova: After a first set characterised by missed opportunities and 11 unforced errors, Boulter's chances of gaining the first Top 10 win of her career appeared slim. The Briton had squandered nine game points - seven on Pliskova's serve and two on her own - across the first five games of the match to go down 5-0.

Indeed, Boulter would be unable to convert the first 13 break points she held on Pliskova. The Czech, a two-time Eastbourne champion in 2017 and 2019, repeatedly extricated herself from dangerous situations with strong first serves.

Highlights: Boulter d. Pliskova

But after one of several dead net cords brought up a 14th break point for Boulter at 4-3 in the second set, Pliskova finally offered up a second serve, then netted a backhand. It was the start of a precipitous dip as her forehand and serve began to abandon her.

The second game of the third set comprised four consecutive double faults from Pliskova; and though she managed to level at 2-2, she could not find the form needed to wrest momentum back from Boulter. Pliskova eventually tallied 40 unforced errors and 11 double faults; No.127-ranked Boulter found 26 winners to 34 unforced errors, and closed out the win with a fifth break of the Pliskova serve.