Britain's Lily Mills set for Australian Open intellectual impairment event

As a baby, Britain's Lily Mills was given just a 50% chance of survival.

The probability of the 23-year-old going on to achieve what she has since would have been substantially lower.

Four days after she was born, Mills fell critically ill and was taken to hospital, where she was put on a life support machine.

She was diagnosed with meningitis and later septicaemia, and if she survived, would have severe brain damage, her mother Tallulah Bayley was told at the time.

Tennis has offered Mills opportunities she would likely not have otherwise had.

Now the biggest of those awaits her after earning a place at the Australian Open, where she will compete in the People With Intellectual Impairment (PWII) tournament.

The question of whether tennis is the most important thing in her life is a very simple one for Mills.

"Yes," she says without hesitation.

"I don't do independent travel and through tennis I have lots more friends.

"It gives me confidence. It gives me an opportunity."

Following her illness, Mills was diagnosed with galactosaemia, a rare genetic disorder affecting up to one in 45,000 babies which prevents her body from turning galactose into glucose.

Through increasingly toxic levels of galactose in the body, the condition can cause vomiting, jaundice, brain damage and death if untreated.

She was also left with cognitive impairments, including learning disabilities, short-term memory loss, poor co-ordination, and a tremor.

"It was awful. It was very, very scary to see her so ill," her mother Bayley tells BBC Sport.

"She was very lonely and sport has enriched her life. It is where she feels confident. It's her happy place."

Mills has excelled in the Special Olympics - a charity providing training and competition for children and adults with learning disabilities, which has facilitated her sporting endeavours.

Her performances have led to her receiving a wildcard for the Australian Open, where global stars such as Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek will also compete.

"It's unbelievable really, [considering] what they told me when she was a baby. She just surprises me every day," Bayley says.

"Apart from the tennis, there is nothing else. This has made her truly happy within herself."

Mills, who won Special Olympics medals in 2019 and 2023, trains most days - she also has her own mural close to her home in Islington and recently attended BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

She will soon travel to Melbourne for the second staging of the PWII tournament, which starts on 26 January.

There has been a global response since Bayley started a fundraiser to cover the cost of Mills' flights, the tennis community rallying in support and a fellow Special Olympics athlete donating more than £1,000 to ensure she can make the trip.

While not enthused by the long flight, Mills is excited by the prospect of now testing herself against the world's best players in her category at a Grand Slam venue.

"You can see the motivation and the energy on the court," her coach Mukember Musa says.

"It has made the coaching process very easy to be honest!

"I always see hard work and commitment - she is an inspiration to everyone."