Dart through to Guangzhou Open second round, Burrage eliminated

Great Britain's Harriet Dart made it through to the second round of the Guangzhou Open on Monday, but compatriot Jodie Burrage was eliminated.

In the first edition of the WTA 250 tournament since 2019, Dart strolled past Germany's Jule Niemeier 6-3 6-2, but Burrage went down 7-6[3] 0-6 2-6 to top seed Magda Linette.

Dart - who is still searching for her first top-level singles title - came through qualifying to set up a first-round tie with Niemeier, whom she had previously defeated in an ITF W25 tournament in Cherbourg-en-Cotentin three years ago.

The 27-year-old had the German's number this time around too, taking just one hour and 17 minutes to wrap up a straightforward two-set victory, in which serving errors bedevilled both pl . . .