Australian Open 2018: Johanna Konta beats Madison Brengle to reach second round

British number one Johanna Konta gained quick ground into the second round of the Australian Open with triumph over American Madison Brengle.

Konta, seeded ninth, won 6-3 6-1 on Hisense Arena, the third show court at Melbourne Park.

The Briton had lost three of their four past matches yet was awfully solid for the world number 90 this time.


Konta, 26, goes ahead to confront American Bernarda Pera, the world number 123, in cycle two.

"I was actually really enjoying being out there," said Konta. "It was a nice day. It was sunny. It was quite a full stadium. There was a lot of people.

"I kind of tried to absorb the atmosphere a little bit. I was really excited to play.

"I thought it was a great first round for me to fight through and battle through and stay strong in the way I wanted to play out there. And I feel I did that."

British number two Heather Watson lost 7-5 7-6 (8-6) to Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan, leaving Konta and Kyle Edmund as the only Britons left in the singles draws.