Let there be no doubt: Grand Slam qualifying draws are merciless tests of mettle.
On Wednesday, three British 19-year-olds – Harriet Dart, Freya Christie and Katie Boulter – proved just how narrow the margin is between triumph and disaster.
Londoner Dart, one of seven British wild cards in the Ladies’ qualifying draw had to wait for the winner of Christie and Japan’s Risa Ozaki’s first-round encounter, held over from Tuesday after bad light stopped play.
Then she dispatched Ozaki 6-4, 6-3, her second win on her Grand Slam debut.
“I’m lucky to have been given a wild card by the All England Club,” said Dart. “I’m really grateful for that, and glad I’ve been able to put on some good performances out there.”
Christie, who made her qualifying debut in 2014, had resumed against Ozaki just two games away from her first Wimbledon win. The Nottingham native retuned leading 7-6, 5-5 and held serve to move within two points of victory, but was frustrated by the No.10 seed’s dogged defence and gave up the set in a tie-break.
Undeterred, Christie dug in and broke for a lead in the decider, only for a back injury to flare up and hamper her movement with the finish line in sight. A match point came and went on Ozaki’s serve at 5-3 before Christie brought up two more on her own serve in the next game, but neither stuck.
“Why now?” she yelled as the trainer was called to tend to her injury, but the damage had been done. Ozaki sealed a 6-7(7), 7-6(4), 7-5 victory as Christie, teary and in pain, was left to wonder what might have been.
“I haven’t seen Freya since her match, but I hope she’s okay,” said Dart, who works with Alan Jones at the JTC Academy in Northwood, north-west London. “There are a good bunch of physios here, so I’m sure she’s getting looked after well.”
The sun was breaking through the clouds by the time Boulter stepped out. And what a start she made against No.13 seed Rebecca Peterson, surging into a 6-4, 5-0 lead over the Swede with some fearless ball-striking behind her picture-perfect serve.
But as Peterson began finding her range, Boulter started to struggle. Forehands that were crushed for clean winners in the opening set were suddenly tight and short. Double faults crept in. And the Swede began clawing her way back, game after game, even saving a match point in game 10 as Boulter faltered on serve.
Well played @harriet_dart one to go! Loving the grass @JTC_Tennis
— Jo Durie (@Jodurie) June 22, 2016
The teenager rebounded to force the tie-break, but Peterson was unstoppable. Boulter saved a match point as she broke to stay in the contest, but it was not enough. Peterson, a 4-6,7-6(3), 6-3 winner, will face No.1 seed Teliana Pereira of Brazil for a place in the main draw.
Moments later on Court 14 Dart held her nerve to oust Ozaki.Victory leaves the Londoner as the last chance to see a Briton qualify for the Ladies’ main draw after further second-round defeats for Lisa Whybourn – beaten 6-3, 7-6(3) by Austrian No.7 seed Tamira Paszek – and Gabriella Taylor, who faded against Vania King of the United States and lost 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.
For Dart, a place in the main draw would be a step in the right direction after a winter spent on the sidelines recovering from a bad heel injury. Last month she reached her sixth ITF $25,000 event final in Goyang, Korea, where she won the doubles title with Christie, but victory on Thursday against Russia’s Ekaterina Alexandrova would be a new career milestone.
“I was injured for five months at the end of last year to the beginning of this year, struggled at the start of the year to get a lot of matches in, and in Korea I managed to get some momentum, with lots of back-to-back good performances, so I’m really pleased I could continue that.”
The dream may be over for Christie and Boulter for another year, but Dart stands one match away from her first Grand Slam appearance – in her home town as well.
“Playing at Wimbledon has been a dream of mine since I was really little, so I’m pleased to get a few match wins,” said Dart, who joins fellow Britons Marcus Willis and Ed Corrie in the final round of qualifying. “It’s great for British tennis. I just hope everyone can keep the success going – hopefully all of us can be in the main draw.”
