Kyle Edmund has been knocking on the ATP door for sometime now and for every tournament that goes by, he is getting closer to that elusive first title that can offer him a solid foundation to build upon in the years ahead. Will that foundation come in Beijing, well that's another matter entirely...

I find Edmund an intriguing prospect at the age of 23, especially considering he is my fellow county man, yes you read correctly county man not just country man. Kyle was brought up in Yorkshire since the age of 3. Yorkshire is the large county in the UK and has a proud tradition of sports people. We are straight talkers and strong characters - well most of us!

Yorkshire is such a sporting county that alone it has won more gold medals at the Olympic games than many countries the world over or even any particular state in the USA for that matter! In 2012 when the Olympics came home to England, my home county claimed seven gold medals, two silver and three bronze! They would have finished 12th in the medals table on their own.

Kyle is following in that tradition for Yorkshire and for Great Britain by producing some outstanding tennis, who knows perhaps he will follow in Andy Murray's shoes and win Olympic gold in Tokyo 2020! I do hope so, it would be an amazing sight to see, especially since I have plans to go watch the tennis over there in Japan as I now live in South East Asia.

Speaking of Asia, that is exactly where Edmund is now, he is currently competing in the Beijing ATP where he has managed to get through to the Semi Finals having overcome a tricky opponent in the Quarter Finals. Edmund beat Dusan Lajovic in straight sets in the QF, the Serbian had shocked number 8th in the world - Grigor Dimitrov in the round previous. He had also taken out Edmund's fellow compatriot Cameron Norrie earlier on in the tournament.

Edmund's performance against Lajovic was rather impressive, his forehand was consistently powerful and with it he bullied Lajovic shifting him around the back of the court for much of the match. Lajovic was found desperately scrambling at times to stay in contention.

Edmund's key to victory against many of the bigger opponents he has fallen short against so far this year is to keep the intensity and conviction high behind his shots. When he drops his aggression he starts to flounder and even though possessing a good defensive game, its not his natural way of playing and so must keep on the attack if he is to stand of a chance in the final.

But before any final he now faces Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili in the Semi's, who is ranked 34th in the world, 16 places below Edmund. It really should be another victory for the Brit, even though Basilashvili also has an aggressive game that sort him take out the likes of Sock and Verdasco, his consistency on his forehand is not up to Edmund's standards, nor is his serve. Edmund beat Basilashvili back in January in the Australian Open, but took 5 sets to do so. That tournament saw him reach the Semi Final, his first time in any Grand Slam.

Basilashvili could prove a tricky test for the Yorkshire man but I expect him to come through it and face Del Potro in the final and what a final that would be.

April Fools for Edmund in Marrakech

After the Australian Open Edmund came close in April when he reached the Marrakesh final only to be shocked by ranked 344th in the world Pablo Andujar, some may have thought it was an April fools joke come late seeing Edmund lose to 344th in the world. That was a huge upset which robbed him of his first title, a bitter pill to swallow but a necessary one to highlight that he still has work to do, to remain mentally consistent throughout a tournament to the very end instead of blowing hot and cold as he is well known for doing.

Toppling the Tower is a Pipe Dream, But Pipe Dreams Sometimes Come True!

This time around he won't have such an easy opportunity to claim his first major as he did in Marrakesh, likely being up against World Number 4 Del Potro aka The Tower, it would take the best performance of his career to take him out. I'd love to believe he has a reasonable chance but it's going to take a stroke of luck seeing the form that Del Potro is currently in. One things for sure if Beijing does come down to a Del Potro vs Edmund final, we will not get to see two better forehands on show in one match for the rest of the year, it will be an exciting final for all British and neutral tennis fans to watch.