Tara Moore is coming to terms with being an unlikely Wimbledon heroine despite losing in the first round at the All England Club.
The 20-year old from Rossington put up a spirited fight against Kaia Kanepi of Estonia, 148 places above her in the world rankings, recovering from one set and 3-0 down in the second to level before succumbing 5-7 7-5 5-7.
Her gallant efforts were watched by millions of TV viewers with countless others following on the internet.
With so many British players exiting Wimbledon in miserable fashion the almost unanimous verdict about the battling Moore was that at least she went down fighting. “There’s no point being here unless you’re going to go out and give it your best,” says Moore who took a medical time out at one stage after falling awkwardly on the grass while trying to change direction.
“It is extra special at Wimbledon. You think about your dad in the crowd, my grandparents in Rossington who were bound to be nervous watching at home, all the people round the court. You want to leave everything out there and I think I did that. I was fighting as hard as I could and I think it showed.”
Moore is also competing in the ladies’ doubles along with fellow Brit Mel South.