Britain’s Francesca Jones qualified for a Grand Slam for the first time with a crushing victory over Lu Jia- Jing in the final round of Australian Open qualifying. The 20-year-old beat China’s Lu 6-0 6-1 in just one hour and one minute. Jones was playing in her first overseas Grand Slam qualifying draw at the tournament in Dubai. “I’m just super happy to qualify and really looking forward to getting out to Oz,” she said. “I’ve never been before and I’m sure it’s going to be an amazing experience.” In reaching the main draw, Jones defeated former world top 30 and top 100 players Monica Niculescu and Jana Fett before her win over world number 200 Lu. Jones has ectrodactyly ectodermal dysplasia syndrome, a rare genetic condition that means she was born with three fingers and a thumb on each hand, three toes on her right foot and four toes on her left.
