Katie Boulter has lost the opening set of her third-round duel against France’s Harmony Tan as her battle to reach the second week of Wimbledon becomes all the more difficult.
The 25-year-old British hopeful lost the first set 6-1 within 30 minutes of stepping onto Court No.2 and now faces an uphill task against the Frenchwoman, who is on a roll after nailing Titan Serena Williams turned off. – biting first round epic.
Britain’s number three now has to win two straight sets against Tan, whose wide variety of play and signature drop shots make her a formidable opponent.
Boulter is no stranger to grabbing victory from the jaws of defeat, but came back from a set-down to beat last year’s finalist Karolina Pliskova.
The rising star – who has posed for Vogue and often shares glamorous snaps on her Instagram – saw the Czech in three dramatic sets on Center Court on Thursday to make the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time.
Holding back her tears in a post-match interview, she revealed her tragic loss as her family, who also seemed emotional, looked on.
Among the relatives in the stands was her grandfather, who invented the anti-theft labels found on clothing in stores.
Katie Boulter is looking for a place in the second week of Wimbledon today as she takes on Harmony Tan in the third round of the tennis Grand Slam (pictured today)
The 25-year-old British hopeful faces an uphill task against Frenchwoman Harmony Tan (pictured today), who is on a roll after knocking out Titan Serena Williams in a heart-pounding first-round fight.
Boulter comes to court on Saturday for a third round match against France’s Harmony Tan
Katie Boulter’s grandfather (left of the empty seat) during her third round match at Wimbledon today
Boulter came from behind after beating 6-3 in the first set, despite the perfect start as she broke the serve to win the first game.
But Boulter then launched a stunning comeback – aided by several well-rated umpire challenges – to win the second set 7-6 and set a grandstand finish in SW19.
The 25-year-old – whose friend is Australian top tennis player Alex de Minaur – then found another gear to take the decisive third set 6-4.
The home crowd roared in support of the rising star, who took a surprise win over the world’s number six, following the double disappointment of defeats to Emma Raducanu and Andy Murray the day before.
After finishing on the court, the 5ft11 player dedicated the win to her grandmother who died on Tuesday – the same day Boulter broke her first win of the tournament when she defeated France’s Clara Burel in straight sets.
Katie Boulter took the biggest win of her career by upsetting Wimbledon finalist Karolina Pliskova at Center Court and reaching the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time this week
In an interview with the BBC she told the crowd: ‘I have absolutely no words right now. The audience was incredible, thank you so much for helping me through it.
‘I’m going to get emotional. My big one passed away two days ago, so I want to dedicate that to her today.
“Honestly, it’s a dream come true for me. I hope I have a lot more games to play and if I have you guys behind me then hopefully I can come a long way, so thank you very much.”
The British number three was in tears during her post-match interview at Center Court, when she dedicated the 3-6 7-6 (4) 6-4 victory to her amazing star after learning of her passing shortly after the victory of Tuesday in the first round at Clara Burel.
“I actually got a call from my grandfather the night before I played,” said the 25-year-old, who has made it to the third round of a grand slam for the first time.
Katie Boulter made the perfect start at Wimbledon today as she broke the serve to win the first game in her second round duel with Karolina Pliskova
Katie Boulter in action during her second round match against Pliskova. The British number three entered the game confidently after a fine run of tournaments on the grass, including the win over Pliskova in Eastbourne last week
“He didn’t say anything, but he kind of gave me a hunch it might be. I didn’t know anything until after my first game where my mom basically took me aside and told me after the first game.
“It must have been a rough few days. I tried to get my emotions out and deal with the situation, to keep my mind on tennis. I was lucky because my grandfather managed to get out of Leicester so we could keep him company and support him at the same time.”
Boulter’s family lived the match with her from the box, and she said of her grandmother: ‘Her favorite tournament was Wimbledon. That’s why it’s special to me. She watched every game that was on TV.
“She’s always been someone who’s been into tennis from the very first stage. She lives near the tennis club. That’s the tennis club where I started playing tennis.
‘Leicestershire is very close to my heart. I spent a lot of time there on the track with my grandparents and my family. It’s a lot of memories. Which I cherish.’
The British number three entered the game with confidence after a fine run of tournaments on the grass, including the win over Pliskova in Eastbourne last week.
And, after defeats to Emma Raducanu and Andy Murray on Wednesday, Boulter delighted the home crowd by coming off a set-down to win 3-6 7-6 (4) 6-4.