Harriet Dart has exited the Eastbourne Open after losing a close encounter in East Sussex.
The 28-year-old, ranked 71 in the world, was looking to use the tournament as preparation for the upcoming Wimbledon Championships.
However, the British player lost 3-6 7-6 5-7 to her opponent, despite having two match points on serve at 5-4 in the final set.
Her opponent, a Wimbledon and French Open champion, broke Dart twice to win the next three games and secure victory, before speaking candidly about her thoughts at match point down.
Barbora Krejcikova says she was ‘already in the locker room’ at match point down
Krejcikova, who has won the French Open, Wimbledon and seven grand slam doubles titles, spoke to the BBC following her victory on Tuesday afternoon.
Krejcikova said: “It was a really tough match and I expected Harriet to play well because she’s home favourite and she loves to play on grass and we are quite close also outside of the court.
“So I expected it was gonna be tough and to be honest in the third set when I was down and having those two match points down I was kind of already in the locker room.
“I’m happy I turned it around.”
The Czech player, who replicated Jana Novotna following her women’s singles triumph at Wimbledon in 2024, will go into the tournament as a serious contender, despite her current ranking of 17 on the WTA Tour.
Barbora Krejcikova says she is super excited to play at Wimbledon
Following her victory, the 29-year-old was asked about her feelings heading into another Wimbledon campaign.
She said: “I’m super excited, I’m super excited. I love being in England and I love to play on the grass so I’m looking forward.”
Krejcikova will face another Brit in the next round, after Jodie Burrage beat Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima 6-3 6-2 in her first-round match.
Burrage, who lost in the qualifiers at the Nottingham Open, will look to cause an upset when she faces the Czech superstar.
