Thai No 1 eyes another shock in Wimbledon second round
Thai ace Lukskika Kumkhum is hoping her better record against American world No 11 Madison Keys will land her an upset win over the 10th seed in the Wimbledon second round on Wednesday.
The 24-year-old Thai reached round two at the All England Club for the first time after she came from behind to oust American Bernarda Pera 4-6 6-2 6-2 in the first round on Monday.
World No 91 Luksika briefly lost her concentration and with it the opening set to her 71st ranked opponent before she raised the level of her play to win the match in one hour and 46 minutes.
"I was figuring out ways to beat her after I lost the first set. It was a bit lucky that she started missing in the second and third sets,” said Luksika, who hails from Chanthaburi province.
Luksika won her first match at the grass Major after losing the first round in 2016. But her best Grand Slam run is to the third round in the Australian Open in January.
But an uphill task awaits her in round two as she is to face Keys, who thrashed Ajla Tomljannovic of Australia 6-4 6-2. However she has beaten the American twice, in the WTA events in Auckland 2013 and Osaka in 2014, both on hard courts.
“I hope to keep the winning streak against her. She hits and serves big which suits grass. I need to be patient and play solid in crucial points,” said Luksika, who will rise above No 87, her highest ever ranking, reached back in October 2014, after Wimbledon.
