James Ward bows out to Julien Benneteau

James Ward's run at the Cincinnati Open has come to an abrupt end after he suffered a heavy defeat to Julien Benneteau.

The British number two had reached the last 32 after winning two qualifying matches before beating Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in the first round.

However, the Londoner was no match for the experienced Frenchman, who broke serve twice in each set to run out a comfortable 6-2 6-2 winner.

Despite the setback, Ward is expected to move into the top 140 in the world rankings, taking him to within reach of his highest position of 137.