Niland beaten in semis

Limerick’s Conor Niland’s odyssey came to an end on the British Satellite Tennis Circuit at the semi-final stages in Cumberland yesterday.

But an excellent week for the new full timer brought a bonus in the shape of additional world ranking points, a bye into next week’s Masters in Nottingham and the fact that he is now seeded for next week’s event.

Niland’s excellent work during the week when he started as a qualifier came to an end at the penultimate stages but it was not until the end of a protracted second set did he succumb to British favourite Matthew Smith. He lost the first set having missed out on breaks but proved a sticky opponent for the fancied Smith in the second set and only went down in the 12th game.