Heather Watson was grateful for the support of Sue Barker during her match with 10th seed Barbora Krejcikova but left deflated after suffering a first round exit at Wimbledon.
British number five Watson made the last-16 in 2022, her best run at the All England Club, but came unstuck at the first hurdle this time as she went down 6-2 7-5 to former French Open winner Krejcikova on Court One.
Watson was watched from the stands by Barker, who left her role as lead anchor of the BBC’s Wimbledon coverage last summer but promised to return to SW19 to see the 31-year-old in action.
While unaware at that time, Watson was delighted to discover she had been in the presence of a true stalwart of the Championships on her 13th appearance at Wimbledon.
“No, I didn’t know. I only look at my box really and there was one young girl on that opposite side that I just, I don’t know, I kept hearing her, so I started fist pumping to her, using her energy, as well,” Watson said.
“I didn’t know Sue was there, but I absolutely adore her. She’s such an amazing person.
“I didn’t know, but I love her. I admire her so much. I think she’s absolutely brilliant. She’s someone I really look up to.
“Yeah, she’s so supportive of me. She sends me messages during the year in support. I’m really grateful for that. I will text her now.”
World number 144 Watson had arrived in SW19 in good form after a strong grass-court season that saw her make the semi-finals of the Rothesay Open in Nottingham last month.
The draw was not kind, however, with 2021 Roland Garros winner Krejcikova having makde the Rothesay Classic final in Birmingham two weeks ago.
Krejcikova immediately came out the traps fast and stormed to a one-sided first set in 35 minutes, before Watson fought back.
She pushed the Czech player all the way in the second, forcing two break points in the ninth game, but they could not be taken and the 10th seed later broke to seal a straight-sets victory.
A philosophical Watson admitted: “I feel like I was playing much better this year than I was last year. You know, it just happens with draws sometimes.
“On the day, yeah, she was much better today. She was really, really good. It’s disappointing, because I know how well I’m playing. But I need a little bit of luck along the way.
“I mean initially coming off the court, really upset. I felt deflated, disappointed. I look forward to these moments so much now.
“For it to be over in the first round, this is just not how I envisaged it, not what I want, but it was tough. It was always going to be a tough ask, tough match against, you know, 10th in the world, grand slam champion.”
Watson’s Wimbledon adventure is not over yet, though with the Guernsey ace set to compete in the doubles and mixed doubles.
Osaka beats Kostyuk for landmark win at Italian Open
Naomi Osaka recorded her first win over a top-20 opponent on clay at the Italian Open on Thursday, posting an impressive 6-3 6-2 victory against Marta Kostyuk to reach the third round.
Having opened her first Italian Open campaign since 2021 with a straight-sets win over Clara Burel on Wednesday, Osaka produced another slick performance to down the world number 20 one day later.
Osaka blitzed Kostyuk to take the opener in just 36 minutes, taking advantage of a sloppy start from the Ukrainian, who served at just 40 per cent in the first set and tallied 15 unforced errors.
The former world number one then forced a break within three games in the second set, only for rain to halt proceedings after she went 3-1 up.
She showed no signs of rustiness upon returning to the court, though, even responding to a late loss of serve with an immediate break back to tee up a third-round clash with 10th seed Daria Kasatkina.
Data Debrief: First for Osaka on least favourite surface
Osaka has never considered herself a clay-court specialist, failing to reach a single tour-level final on the surface throughout her career.
Ahead of Thursday's match, she was 0-8 on clay against opponents in the top 20 of the WTA rankings. However, a routine victory should give her hope of repeating the feat against Kasatkina next time out.
Nadal fights back to win opener in Rome
Rafael Nadal fought back from a slow start to defeat Belgian qualifier Zizou Bergs 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in his opening match at the Italian Open.
Nadal endured a poor first set, losing five of the last six games, but turned things around in impressive style, spending two hours and 47 minutes on the court on Thursday.
The 10-time Italian Open champion saved all five break points he faced in the second and third sets to take key points and earn a seventh win of the season.
Nadal is competing in his third consecutive tour-level event after missing most of last year due to a hip injury that required surgery before his comeback was halted by a muscle tear in January.
"That was not my best match, I was practising better than I played today, but I found a way to win," he said after the match.
"That’s so important at the beginning of the tournament. My game is more unpredictable than before. I didn’t play much tennis for the last two years, so have some ups and downs, on and off, but I think I can do much better than today and I hope to do it next round."
The Spaniard will face seventh-seeded Hubert Hurkacz in the second round.
Data Debrief:
Nadal had only lost one of his previous 18 opening-round matches in Rome before Thursday and avoided adding to that tally in his final appearance at the tournament.
He has the most wins at the Foro Italico (70), where he first claimed the title on his debut in 2005.
Osaka makes winning return at Italian Open
Naomi Osaka claimed a straight sets victory over Clara Burel in the first round of the Italian Open.
Making her first appearance in Rome since 2021, former world number one Osaka prevailed 7-6 (7-2) 6-1 on Wednesday, marking her first win over a top-50 opponent on clay since she defeated Victoria Azarenka at Roland Garros in 2019.
Osaka, who is now ranked 173rd in the world by the WTA, will face Marta Kostyuk in the second round.
She previously faced Kostyuk in the 2020 US Open, en route to winning her third major title.
Data Debrief: Back with a bang
Osaka reached the quarter-finals of the Italian Open in 2019, but did not win a game in 2021 and has not appeared at any other edition since then.
That means the 26-year-old won her first match at the event since she beat Mihaela Buzarnescu in 2019 (1,819 days ago). She wrapped up the win in one hour and 24 minutes, finishing with 27 winners, including eight aces.
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