Heather Watson believes the future is bright for British tennis after breaking into the top 100 with victory at the French Open.
British teenager breaks into top 100 after Paris triumph
Heather Watson believes the future is bright for British tennis after breaking into the top 100 with victory at the French Open on Tuesday.
Four days after her 19th birthday, the former US Open junior champion beat Stephanie Foretz Gacon 7-6 (8/6) 6-1 in the first round at Roland Garros to become the first British woman to win a main-draw match since Clare Wood in 1994.
Watson had ended an even longer wait on Friday by becoming the first British woman to win a final-round match in qualifying for 28 years.
Even more encouraging for British tennis fans was the manner in which the world number 117 secured victory against Foretz Gacon, saving five set points in the opener before breezing through the second set.
Milestone
Watson, who plays Kaia Kanepi in the second round, said: "I don't really know much about the records but we've got a lot of good players coming through.
"I feel like I'm getting older because I've just had my birthday. Laura (Robson) is coming up, and on the boys' side there's George Morgan and Oli Golding.
"When I am back at the NTC (National Tennis Centre) I see everybody working very hard to try and reach their goals."
The victory also brought up a personal milestone for Watson, who will now break into the top 100 for the first time when the rankings are updated in two weeks' time.
She added: "That's been my goal and I've achieved my goal. I actually wanted to get into the top 100 by the end of the year so I'm going to have to set new goals for myself. I'm so pleased with that."
