Wimbledon 2018: Katie Swan claims shock win as Harriet Dart, Cameron Norrie and Liam Broady knocked out
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Katie Swan storms to win over Begu - Best Shots
Wimbledon 2018 on the BBC |
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Venue: All England Club, Wimbledon Dates: 2-15 July |
Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer, BBC Red Button, Connected TVs and the BBC Sport website and app; Live Radio 5 live and 5 live sports extra commentary; Text commentary online. |
British wildcard Katie Swan reached the second round at Wimbledon for the first time as she shocked world number 36 Irina-Camelia Begu.
Swan, 19, claimed an impressive 6-2 6-2 victory against the 27-year-old Romanian in 56 minutes on Court 14.
Harriet Dart gave seventh seed Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic a scare but the 21-year-old's Wimbledon debut ended in a 7-6 (7-2) 2-6 6-1 defeat.
In the men's singles, Liam Broady and Cameron Norrie were both knocked out.
Broady was beaten 7-5 6-0 6-1 by Canadian Milos Raonic.
Slovenian Aljaz Bedene, 28, overcame 22-year-old Norrie 4-6 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 in a gruelling match lasting two hours and 49 minutes.
World number 71 Bedene - who became a British citizen in 2015 before switching allegiance back to the country of his birth - held his nerve in two tie-breaks to overcome Norrie.
Eight more Britons are in action on Tuesday, including number ones Johanna Konta and Kyle Edmund, but Andy Murray is absent after withdrawing from the championships on Sunday.
Britain's Katie Swan is ranked 204 in the world
Swan gracefully into next round
Bristol-born Swan produced a composed and confident display against Begu as she went one better than her last appearance in the women's singles first round in 2016.
The British number nine broke Begu's serve in the fourth game and then took a second chance in the eighth to seal the first set.
Begu struggled against Swan's serve in the second set and vented her frustration by whacking her racquet against her chair at 3-2.
Swan capitalised with a break in the sixth game - and after holding her own serve, had two match points on Begu's.
The Romanian was able to save the first but then double-faulted to the elation of the home crowd while Swan punched the air.
"Winning here is something that I've dreamed about since I was a little girl," Swan said.
"But it isn't the end. I still want to win my next match. I definitely want to keep going in the tournament."
Pocketing £63,000 for her win, Swan will next face Romanian 29th seed Mihaela Buzarnescu.
'Her first serve is such a weapon' - analysis
Former GB Fed Cup tennis player Mel South
It is such a special moment to win your first main draw match in the senior tournament, and you have to say Katie Swan deserved it with a fine performance against a more experienced opponent.
She is so dedicated and worked so hard following a difficult time with injures. I know she did so much physically to get in such good shape, so what a win that is for her.
When her first serve goes in, it's such a weapon and she showed that today. Katie is only 19 and hopefully this is the first of many wins for her at Wimbledon in the future.
Raonic serve kind of shocked me - Broady
Wildcard Broady, 24, had gone toe-to-toe with the 13th seed in the first set before he was broken decisively in the 12th game.
However, the British number seven had no answer after that to the serve of Raonic - who sent down 18 aces in the match - winning just a solitary game in the next two sets.
"I have never played someone with a serve that big before. From the start of the match, I think the first game he went a couple like 136mph, 138mph," said Broady.
"Even a second serve I think at one point in the match was like 140. It kind of shocked me a bit."
Dart gives Pliskova a fright
Harriet Dart was playing at her first Wimbledon
Dart, ranked 171 in the world, caught the eye in her first meeting with a top-10 player.
After she had exchanged breaks with Pliskova in the first set of their match, the world number eight lifted her performance levels to win on a tie-break.
London-born Dart, who beat Pliskova's twin sister Kristyna at Eastbourne last week to record her first win over a player in the top 100, did not let the setback affect her.
The British number five, in her first meeting with a top-10 player, immediately broke Pliskova's serve twice in the second set.
With a 4-1 lead, Dart lost her footing and fell awkwardly which prompted a lengthy medical stoppage for treatment a thigh injury.
However, roared on by the home crowd on Court 12, she recovered to take the second set in style with a service game to love.
A double fault from Dart in the fourth game of the the deciding set saw Pliskova break the Briton's serve.
Wildcard Dart was unable to recover and the Czech broke her again before serving out for the match - finishing with an ace.
At least being knocked out early will give her the chance to dedicate a bit more time to her studies - she is doing a psychology degree via Open University.
"I have half the workload of a usual student," Dart said. "It helps that I can put my mind to use on something else as well."