Two-time Olympian Heather Watson pulled no punches when assessing her performance in her second-round defeat at the Australian Open.
Watson’s 6-3, 6-0 loss to Belgium’s 16th seed Elise Mertens was followed by further British disappointment as Harriet Dart was ousted by world No.3 Simona Halep, losing 6-2, 6-4 on the Rod Laver Arena.
The double blow means there are no British singles players left in the competition with Dan Evans going out in round two and Johanna Konta, Katie Boulter, Kyle Edmund and Cameron Norrie all falling at the first hurdle.
Watson reached the semi-finals of last week’s Hobart International – beating Mertens en route – before downing Czech Republic’s Kristyna Pliskova in the first round in Melbourne.
But the 27-year-old, who competed at London 2012 and Rio 2016, managed to win just three games against Mertens this time around and was highly critical of her showing.
"I felt like my level wasn't there,” British No.2 Watson said. “I felt like I was a millimetre or a second too slow and I was letting her dictate.
"It was one of those days, physically. You don't feel amazing every day and today was that day, unfortunately.
"As the match went on, I thought she played better and was more aggressive but I was not happy with my performance at all.
"My level was a lot lower than Hobart and her level was higher, but because my level was lower I allowed her to step up and play a lot better.
"She is ranked where she is for a reason and I had to play a lot better than I did to have a chance." Sportsbeat 2020