Johanna Konta's dream of a Wimbledon win must wait another 12 months after the British number one was downed in straight sets by a confident Dominika Cibulkova.
Cibulkova prevailed 6-3, 6-4 on Centre Court to reach the third round at the All England Club, while 22nd seed Konta’s early exit from SW19 means there are no British women left in the singles competition, after Katie Boulter’s defeat to Naomi Osaka earlier in the day.
But Konta, who is in danger of dropping out of the world’s top 50 after this reversal at the hands of the Slovakian, refused to be downbeat.
Indeed, she was quick to praise the performance of her tenacious and metronomic opponent, a two-time Wimbledon quarter-finalist, who served up a potent mix of aggression and accuracy to sail through to the next stage.
“She’s a very good player and she played incredibly well,” said Konta of her opponent, who was denied a seeded place at the championship after the inclusion of the returning Serena Williams in the top 32.
“She’s very feisty in the way she plays and brings a lot out of herself – she’s very physical and a fighter on court.
“I think she was hitting winners from five metres behind the baseline so she was obviously seeing the ball very well and feeling good in the way she wanted to play.
“I found it very difficult to get a foothold in the match and a large part of that was down to how she played.
“She made very few errors and with the pace and margins which she was playing the ball, I didn’t have as much in the say in the match as I would have liked.”
Konta rode the crest of a wave in 2017, capturing the hearts and minds of the British public en route to a place in the last four, a run which was ultimately ended by Venus Williams, while simultaneously reaching a career-high of world number four.
But while indifferent form since then has seen her slip away from the peak of the rankings, Konta is defiantly confident that she is making the right moves in the long run in a bid to return to the highest seedings of the sport.
“I don’t compare it with last year, I’m in a different place with different challenges,” added the 27-year-old. “I’m in a good place and appreciating how I’m working now and trying to build on this, I’m not living in the past.
“I haven’t regressed, last year I don’t think I added as much to my game as I would have liked and I think that cost me towards the end of the year.
“But this year I’m heading in the direction that I want to be.
“I’m clearer in the way I want to play and clearer in the shot selection that I want to do – I think I’m getting fitter and moving forward more, which is something I want to do as well.” Earlier in the day, Katie Boulter was defeated by Japanese 18th seed Naomi Osaka 6-3 6-4 to bring her Wimbledon campaign to an end.
Boulter, who claimed her first SW19 singles victory earlier in the week, also came up against an opponent in form and was philosophical in defeat - acknowledging the better player was victorious.
"I have surprised myself a little bit but I know the work I've put in at the same time, it's all there," said the Leicester hitter. "It's been a really good experience playing on the grass and puts me in a good stage going into the rest of the season.
By Jimmy Booker at Wimbledon Sportsbeat 2018