Katy Dunne kept British interest in the ladies' singles qualifying tournament alive with a hard-earned win on day three at the Bank of England Sports Club, but there was heartbreak for fellow British wild cards Harriet Dart and Maia Lumsden, who both lost rain-interrupted matches.
Dunne, the world No.286, booked her place in the second round for the second time with a 7-5, 7-5 victory over Serbia’s Ivana Jorovic, having resumed play at 2-2 following Tuesday’s rain.
Dunne was as much relieved as she was delighted to seal victory in straight sets, having twice served for the match as the rain fell again at Roehampton.
“When I lost my service game and it went to 5-5, and I felt the rain, I was like ‘ugh, Katy, why didn’t you finish that off and serve it out’,” Dunne said with a smile. “But I got myself back onto the job I had to do, and it worked out.”
Rain delays aren’t all bad news for the players. Dunne made the most of the chance to catch up with family and friends, having spent long spells on the road already this year, most recently in Australia and Japan, where she spent time with compatriots Dart, Gabriella Taylor, Freya Christie, Katie Boulter and Laura Robson.
“I don’t see my family too much, so my uncle and cousin were here,” Dunne said. “I see my mum a bit too much over the grass season anyway! But my dad never really sees me play, so that was nice.”
Having first entered the qualifying draw in 2012, 22-year-old Dunne has the chance to reach the final round of qualifying for a second time, having first reached the second round in 2015.
“It’s not new territory, which is quite nice,” she said, adding that she would approach her showdown with Alison Van Uytvanck “in just the same way – take each point as it comes and compete hard and see what happens.
As for the thought of reaching The Championships for the first time, she said: “It would mean the world – but I’ve got a long way to go for that to happen.”
Lumsden was left to rue two missed chances to serve out victory over Barbora Krejcikova, having come through pre-qualifying to play at Roehampton for a second straight year, only to bow out 4-6, 7-6(1), 10-8.
The Glaswegian 19-year-old returned from a rain delay to break and take the second set into a tie-break, but the Czech No.22 seed ran away with it, only to slip an early break down in the decider.
Lumsden had the chance to serve out victory at 5-4, but Krajcikova had match points in game 14 before Lumsden held for 7-7. She then broke serve for a second chance to win in game 16. But it wasn’t to be – the Scot succumbed to the break back before giving up the match on the fourth match point, the last British woman to fall in the first round.
Earlier, British No.7 Dart fell after losing an extended third set for the second successive year, beaten 3-6, 6-4, 9-7 by Turkey’s Cagla Buyukakcay. The 20-year-old, beaten 13-11 in the final round of qualifying a year ago, let slip two match points.
Elsewhere, there was first-round disappointment for fellow Britons Eden Silva, Christie and Taylor. Londoner Silva, who earned her place at Roehampton for the first time through the pre-qualifying tournament, held four set points in the opener against Jasmine Paolini, but the Italian No.15 seed turned the match on its head after trailing 5-1 to win 7-5, 6-2.
Taylor proved no match for former French Open quarter-finalist Van Uytvanck, who claimed the first 10 games on her way to a 6-0 6-2 victory, while Christie was outgunned by Australian starlet Destanee Aiava, who ran away with a 6-3, 6-0 win to set up a second-round showdown with Krejcikova.
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