THERE was a British wipeout in the singles on the grass courts at the Lexus Ilkley Trophy yesterday.

Charles Broom lost in the last 16 of the ATP Challenger Tour event at Ilkley Lawn Tennis & Squash Club, and after that there were defeats for Yuriko Lily Miyazaki, Ranah Akua Stoiber and Amarni Banks at the equivalent stage of the ITF Women’s World Tour event.

Then Sonay Kartal, who beat Miyazaki, and Ella McDonald were knocked out in the quarter-finals as the singles events got back on track in glorious sunshine after four days of mixed weather at Ilkley Lawn Tennis & Squash Club.

Broom, a quarter-finalist last year, bowed out 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Centre Court to seventh seed Zachary Svajda of the United States.

Kartal showed consistent power to beat Miyazaki 6-2, 6-4, while Stoiber fell 6-1, 7-6 (0) to Canadian Rebecca Marino.

Banks' game yesterday was a much closer affair, but she bowed out after losing 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to France’s Jessika Ponchet.

Lancashire teenager McDonald defeated Thailand’s Lanlana Tararudee 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-1 before Ponchet beat her 7-5, 6-1, while Kartal lost 7-6 (4), 7-5 to Australia’s Kimberley Birrell in her quarter-final.

Teenage Lancastrian Ella McDonald had a positive tournament, but her run at this year's Ilkley Trophy finally ended at the quarter-final stage.Teenage Lancastrian Ella McDonald had a positive tournament, but her run at this year's Ilkley Trophy finally ended at the quarter-final stage. (Image: Jack Gray Photography.)

That defeat spelled the end of Kartal's bid for her third successive Ilkley Trophy semi-final.

Bolton-born Banks, who is 21, said of her defeat to Ponchet: “I played a really tough opponent who had a really big serve and I tried my best on grass, which is a surface that I haven’t had a lot of experience on.

“I gave it my all and I was happy with my performance. With every match that I played on grass here I felt more comfortable on it.

“I will now rest and recover and go through the match with my coach just to see how I can improve.

"Next up for me are the Wimbledon qualifiers, which will be really exciting as it will be my first Grand Slam.

“I don’t know who I am going to play next, but I am sure that it will be difficult and again I will just give it my all.”

Today’s semi-finals, which will both be played on Centre Court, are Birrell v Marino and an all-French battle between Elsa Jacquemot and Ponchet.

The men’s semi-finals are Belgium’s David Goffin against Svajda, on Centre Court, and another all-French clash on Court One between qualifier Benjamin Bonzi and Harold Mayot, who defeated second seed Lloyd Harris (South Africa) 6-3, 6-2 yesterday on Centre Court.

Goffin, four times a Grand Slam quarter-finalist, including twice at Wimbledon, showed his clever placement of serve, retrieving ability and shotmaking in a 6-3, 6-4 defeat of unseeded French player Terence Atmane.

The 33-year-old Goffin said: “It was a great match and it was decided by a few points here and there, but I was felling really comfortable during the rallies and he was under pressure in all of his service games.

“I am happy with my level on grass after three good wins and it will give me confidence for today’s semi-final and next week’s Wimbledon qualifying.

“Every grass court tournament is different. Here it is a bit faster than s’Hertogenbosch in Holland last week, and next week it will be different again for Roehampton, where I haven’t played for a lot of years.

“I am really motivated and I have worked hard to get back and my level was there at the French Open, where I lost to (world number four) Alexander Zverev.

"I now feel 100 per cent again finally and that is the key to getting back to where I want to be.

“I would prefer to play at Queen’s - I am not going to lie - but I don’t have the ranking yet.

"However, this is a perfect tournament - a 125 Challenger with a lot of points if you go deep in the tournament.

“The tournament is great when the sun is there, and this was much better than the beginning of the week.

"It is a great venue here at Ilkley, the people are really nice, I have had a nice welcome and I am really happy to be here.

“We will see about a wild card to Wimbledon, but I have two more matches here yet and I am just thinking about my next one.”