Jodie Burrage's Australian Open campaign came to an end on Wednesday as she succumbed to a valiant 6-3, 7-5 second-round defeat to American world No. 3 Coco Gauff in Melbourne.
The 25-year-old Brit gave a good account of herself in the opening set, but was ultimately unable to give Gauff real trouble.
At 3-1 down in the second set, Burrage seemed as though she would slip to a regulation defeat to her American opponent who is ranked 170 places above her, but a spirited fightback saw her win four games in a row to an unlikely lead. However, a double fault gave Gauff the opening she needed to break straight back before she coolly served out the match to book her place in the third round.
The result marks a clear improvement for Burrage -- the last time the pair met in 2023, the Brit took just two games off Gauff.
"It was tough, she was serving really well so I was just trying to manage that honestly. In pretty much all the first serve points I was starting off in defence, she really stepped her level up in the middle of the second set so I was just trying to be offensive when I could," Gauff said.
Meanwhile, fellow Brit Harriet Dart also exited the tournament in the second round following a 4-6, 6-0, 6-2 loss to 18th-seed Donna Vekic.
Dart, who received a late call-up to the tournament as a "lucky loser" after 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova withdrew with an injury, looked as if she might cause a remarkable upset after taking the first set on Court 14, but the 28-year-old was eventually outclassed by her Croatian opponent.
Further reading:
- How to watch Australian Open in the UK
- Andy Murray on coaching Novak Djokovic
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