Sports15 June, 20262 min read
Francesca Jones Misses Two Match Points in Nottingham Open Loss to Talia Gibson
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Gibson defeated Jones in the Nottingham Open first round. Jones missed two match points while serving for victory.
Nottingham opens with drama
Britain’s Francesca Jones missed two match points in a narrow Nottingham Open first-round defeat to Talia Gibson, with the match lasting three hours and six minutes and ending 6-3 5-7 7-6 (7-4). Jones, who forced a deciding set after being an early break down in the third and taking a medical timeout, held two match points while serving for victory at 5-3 before Gibson broke back and won the tie-break 7-4. The BBC also reported that Jones hit 15 aces and landed 75% of her first serves, while the doctor was called to court to check her blood pressure and vitals.
Earlier at Nottingham, Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen battled back to beat Maria Sakkari 4-6 7-6 (7-1) 6-4, snapping her three-match losing streak. The BBC added that Queen’s finalist Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter withdrew from the tournament on Monday, alongside defeats for Harry Wendelken and Jack Pinnington Jones at Queen’s.
Gibson vs Jones: the turning points
In the Nottingham first round, the BBC described how Jones was broken to start the second set and then sat with her head under a towel, breathing deeply, before continuing after a medical timeout. Jones later took another medical timeout at 5-5 in the third set after appearing to struggle with a nasal problem, but she still broke Gibson back and forced the final set tie-break. The BBC said Jones was twice a break up in the deciding set and served for the match against Gibson, only for Gibson to hold firm in the tie-break.
At the same tournament, the LTA results update highlighted that Donna Vekic defeated Emma Raducanu 6-0, 7-6(6) to become the new women’s singles champion at the HSBC Championships at Queen’s. The LTA update also noted that Olivia Nicholls and Tereza Mihalikova won the women’s doubles title after beating Leylah Fernandez and Laura Siegemund 6-3, 6-7(4), 10-5.
Markets and next matches
A Coinbase prediction market framed the upcoming Gibson vs Jones matchup as a contract that resolves to Yes if Talia Gibson wins the Gibson vs Jones professional tennis match in the 2026 WTA Nottingham Round Of 32 after a ball has been played. The same Coinbase page said the market ended at Jun 15, 2026, 5:00 PM GMT+0 and listed interest of $2,484,321.10 with total $6.7M. The BBC’s Nottingham coverage also set the stage for what comes next by reporting that earlier at Nottingham Zheng Qinwen advanced after beating Maria Sakkari 4-6 7-6 (7-1) 6-4.
Meanwhile, the LTA update said 2024 champion Tommy Paul advanced to the second round after beating Zachary Svajda 7-5, 6-3 and that Paul would face 2022 semi-finalist Botic van de Zandschulp. The LTA update added that the BBC iPlayer and Tennis Channel would carry watch options for the HSBC Championships action, with the event taking place between 6 - 21 June.