Johanna Konta is on course to win her first singles match at Wimbledon to underline her new-found status and deliver on the accompanying expectation.
Konta is the first British woman to be seeded at the All England Club since Jo Durie in 1984, capping a remarkable 12 months which includes reaching the semi-finals of the Australian Open and earning Team GB selection for next month’s Olympic Games in Rio.
However, four straight first round defeats at SW19 is a stain the number 16 seed was keen to erase from her record against Puerto Rico’s Monica Puig.
And she wasn’t hanging about, dropping just one game in a first set that lasted just 23 minutes and leading 2-1 in the second when rain stopped play.
Bad weather also prevented British number two Heather Watson starting her campaign against world number 39, Germany’s Annika Beck.
But Andy Murray joined fellow Brits Dan Evans and Marcus Willis in the second round with a confident start, beating Davis Cup team-mate Liam Broady in double-quick time before the rain arrived.
And wildcard Tara Moore became the first British woman to win this year with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Alison Van Uytvanck, her first Grand Slam victory, although rising star Katie Swan was beaten on her Wimbledon debut.
Moore was ranked 100 places below her Belgian rival but produced the match of her career to set up a clash with Svetlana Kuznetsova, who beat former world number one Caroline Wozniacki.
“It’s amazing,” said Moore, who was born in Hong Kong and moved to the UK as a teenager.
“Who would have thought before the grass season that I’d be where I am right now. I’m really grateful to the All England Club for giving me this opportunity.
“I think I’ve definitely worked really hard and I’ve definitely put in a lot of graft and I think it’s paying off finally.
“I definitely think British tennis is on the up, as a nation, we’re definitely improving. We push each other on and we’re supportive of each other.”
