A beaming Alex Ward admitted he was playing some of the best tennis of his career as he breezed into the final qualifying rounds of Wimbledon.

Northampton’s Ward powered to a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Go Soeda of Japan at the Bank of England Sports Centre in Roehampton.

The British number 19 will now face a third-round showdown as he looks to book his place in the main draw at the All-England Club.

And despite insisting he would take each match as it comes, the 27-year-old was delighted with his strong display against Soeda that puts him within touching distance of a place at the oldest tennis tournament on the planet.

“I think I’ve grown into the week,” said Ward. “I think this was similar to the last two sets I played in the first round and I just carried it on today.

“To be honest it was probably the best match I’ve ever played. It was great, I didn’t do much wrong at all and I played some of my best tennis.

“I’d struggled for form a while ago, but now I feel like I’m picking up momentum. It’s clicked this week, and it’s going well at the moment.

“But I’m taking things step by step – obviously it would be incredible to get into the main draw but right now I’m happy to reach that final round of qualifying, where I’ve never been before.”

Ward, the current world number 855, believes his upturn in form is down to sheer dogged dedication to his craft, coupled with the unwavering belief he would register more positive results after a blip earlier this year.

And despite tricky overcast conditions in London, the Northampton hitter looked at ease on the court, comfortably earning the victory in the end.

“I was a bit cold to be honest!” he joked. “On Monday we were playing in mid-twenties heat and today it was pretty damp and cold, but once I got into it I felt good, despite the conditions.

“I prefer slower surfaces normally. But it’s nice to be in England and nice to play on home courts.

“I’ve definitely stuck at my game. When I was going before, I kept working hard and kept working on my game, I kept believing that I would start to play well again, and luckily it’s come around this week.”

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