BEDENE READY TO DITCH GB FOR SLOVENIA

AFTER becoming the first British player to reach the second round of this year’s French Open, Aljaz Bedene suggested he may switch allegiance back to Slovenia so he can play at the Olympics. Bedene moved to Hertfordshire in 2008 and has played under the British flag since 2015. But his attempts to represent GB in the Davis Cup have been frustrated at every turn, because he has already turned out for Slovenia in three ties. After beating American Ryan Harrison 6-4, 6-0, 3-6, 6-1 in Paris, the 27-year-old British No 3 was asked whether he would consider switching back to Slovenia. ‘Well, at the moment I’m representing Great Britain,’ he said. ‘But I do want to play at the Olympic Games. That is, I think, a dream for every athlete. I’ll have to see on that what can be done. I don’t know what the rules are, really.’ Bedene would have to make himself available to play Davis Cup for his country of birth in order to be eligible for Tokyo in 2020, and would not necessarily be welcomed back with open arms. British No 4 Dan Evans, who has been leapfrogged by Bedene in the rankings, has questioned the world No 52’s British credentials and said that he was no longer living at his home in Welwyn Garden City. Bedene confirmed that he has been spending more time in Slovenia. ‘Well, I still have a house in England, in Welwyn,’ he said. ‘At the moment for the clay season I spent quite a lot of time in Slovenia. My fiancee said she wants to move back. She wants to have her career there. I’m travelling a lot, so it’s not easy. But I do want to spend as much time as I can with her.’ Bedene, whose fiancee Kimalie is a pop singer, faces Czech world No 57 Jiri Vesely in the second round in Paris.