Heather Watson flattened by Elise Mertens; Harriet Dart bullied into submission by Simona Halep in Melbourne
Thursday 23 January 2020 12:51, UK
British interest at the Australian Open came to an end for another year in singles competition as Heather Watson and Harriet Dart were both sent crashing out.
Watson and Dart both suffered chastening second-round exits to follow fellow Brits Johanna Konta, Katie Boulter, Dan Evans, Kyle Edmund and Cameron Norrie out of the tournament.
British No 2 Watson went down to a disappointing defeat at the hands of Elise Mertens, while plucky Dart suffered a 6-2 6-4 loss at the hands of former finalist here, Simona Halep.
Watson claimed her best win for two-and-a-half years over world No 17 Mertens in the quarter-finals of the Hobart International last week.
Watson therefore arrived in Melbourne with confidence soaring, and she battled superbly to beat Kristyna Pliskova and the wind in the opening round on Wednesday.
But Watson could not find anything like the same level against Mertens as she made a meek exit to the 16th seed.
The Belgian won the final eight games and the match 6-3 6-0 in just 56 minutes.
I wish I didn't lose the way I lost. I wish at least I got closer in the score. It happens. Now I will go home.
Watson pulled no punches in her assessment of her performance, saying: "I felt my level wasn't there today. My movement. I was a millimetre or a second too slow to everything. I was letting her dictate.
"As the match went on, she played better and was more aggressive. I am just not happy with my performance at all."
It has nevertheless been a good two weeks for Watson, and she added: "I remember last year this time I would have be happy to win a single match.
"The fact I have played so many here in Australia, feeling good, in good spirits. I wish I didn't lose the way I lost. I wish at least I got closer in the score. It happens. Now I will go home."
There was still a reddish-brown layer to the court because of heavy rain that dumped a layer of dust on the outside courts, and Watson made an inauspicious start by dropping serve in the opening game.
She recovered the break straight away and then held serve, but that would be the only time she would lead in the match, with Watson simply making too many errors against an opponent who retrieves extremely well and is capable of punishing a short ball.
Things went downhill swiftly for Watson in the second set, the fight draining out of the 27-year-old, who won only eight points in the six games.
Dart was making her second appearance on Rod Laver Arena in as many years, having failed to win a game against Maria Sharapova in the first round 12 months ago.
She avoided that fate comfortably this time and had Halep worried when she fought back from 5-1 down to 5-4 in the second set, saving a match point.
That proved to be as good as it got, but Dart can take great confidence from her performance in the straight-sets defeat.
Thanks to her three victories in qualifying and one in the main draw, Dart's ranking is projected to rise from 173 to 141, and her next outing could well be in Britain's Fed Cup play-off against Slovakia in two weeks' time.
Speaking on court, Wimbledon champion Halep said: "It was a little bit dangerous. I lost the focus a little bit but she started to play very well. I'm happy I went through it."
Dart, who also won three matches in qualifying, said: "It was always going to be a difficult match. In the last 20 minutes I upped my level, and I will be taking those positives for the rest of the year.
"I started to be more aggressive, winning more points, getting more errors from her. There's definitely progress, it's been a great week for me."
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