Harriet Dart admitted it was back to the drawing board after nearly pulling off a second-round victory over a top ten player at Wimbledon.
Dart slipped to a narrow 4-6 6-3 6-1 defeat against American number eight seed Jessica Pegula. The British number two started the match in a flurry but admitted frustration with how she allowed Pegula back into the clash.
It was clear the 25-year old – who reached the first quarter-finals of her career in Nottingham and Eastbourne this month – was losing her way.
She became increasingly irritable, arguing with the umpire over a Pegula line call challenge on match point she believed came too late.
She’d not calmed down by her post-match press conference, which lasted barely three minutes.
“I’m disappointed but when you give a top ten player a gap like that, it’s hard to come back from it,” said Dart, who is on the LTA’s Pro Scholarship Programme – the highest level of support for players aged 16-24.
“I was frustrated, I was playing very average and missing so many balls.
“I knew I needed to play at a level and I didn’t do that. You can drop your level against a player that good as they’ll only get better as the match goes on.
“I didn’t find any solutions to what she was doing, that’s something I need to reflect on.”
Dart will be back in action in the women’s doubles with Heather Watson, who earlier secured her progress to the third round.
Last year she reached the final of the mixed doubles with Joe Salisbury but she’s not competing in that event this year.
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PHOTO CAPTION: Harriet Dart couldn’t repeat her success for recent tournaments in Nottingham and Eastbourne as she exited Wimbledon in the second round (Photo via LTA)
