Francesca Jones: British beat Anouk Koevermans to win the second Challenger title

Brit Francesca Jones beat Palermo 6-3 6-2 6-2 to beat Anouk Koevermans.

The 24-year-old will climb to 84th in the world on Monday’s release rankings, making her first appearance in the top 100.

England’s Jones lost in his first round at Wimbledon earlier this month but has since won a row of Challenger Tour events, now the fourth alternative to next month’s major draw.

She broke the Dutch opponent and led 5-3 before attending the opening ceremony.

Jones didn’t place a game at the Palermo Ladies Open, which brought that momentum into the second game and broke into the opening game again before double-breaking with a 4-1 score and success.

The Bradford-born player reached her first WTA semifinal in 2023 but worked hard in this game and never surpassed the first round in the Grand Slam.

British George Loffhagen also beat Spain’s Nicolas Alvarez Varona 6-4 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (4-7) to a positive end this week.

This is the first time that Loffhagen, 24, has canceled the championship on the Challenger Tour.