Katie Swan admits nerves ended her Wimbledon dream
Swan was defeated 7-6(2) 7-6(6) by Spain's Leyre Romero Gormaz, with the 26-year-old Brit unable to mark her return to Grand Slam tennis with victory after persistent back injuries forced her to contemplate retirement.
But while the result stings, Swan is adamant that win or lose, her story is still being written, and the 26-year-old is determined to learn from her defeat.
'It was a tough match,' she said. 'I was pretty nervous coming out. It's been a couple of years since I've played in a slam as I've had a tough couple of years physically.
'I wanted to win really badly today, and I think that affected my tennis. I fought the best that I could but I don't think my level was there today.
'I've been playing well in the last couple of months since coming back from injury and some days it just doesn't go as well as you hope.
'I fought really hard to come back in both sets and put myself in a position to win them but I made too many errors in tight moments and she was also very solid.'
It was only as recently as 2023 that Swan was going toe-to-toe with Katie Boulter for the British No.1 ranking.
But while the Bristolian and world No.753 admits she still has a ways to go before returning to those levels, she revealed that she is savouring every moment out on the court.
She added: 'I'm disappointed with the result but I'm really happy to be playing tennis at this level again. From July to December last year I didn't touch a racket.
'I stopped altogether and took a coaching job to make some money so to be able to play the last couple of months without pain has been the most positive thing to come out of all this .
'I didn't expect to play a Grand Slam event this soon in the comeback so I'm very happy that I got here and earnt it.
'The last two years when I was competing. I was always in pain, having to retire or withdraw from tournaments. I put in a good shift with my team and I felt ready to compete.
'I didn't know what to expect coming back to competition.
'I wish I could've won today to speed up the process but I'll go back to the ITF tour and keep working hard in more tournaments.'
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