Liu ends a 25-year wait for an American girls champion

CALIFORNIAN teenager Claire Liu put her recent Roland Garros near-miss behind her to become the first American to lift the girls’ singles trophy at Wimbledon since Chanda Rubin in 1992.

After finishing second best to another American, Whitney Osuigwe, in the junior final in Paris, Liu kept her head long enough to beat another promising youngster from the US, Ann Li, 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 on No.1 Court.

Liu let out a huge sigh of relief when she finally crossed the finish line after an hour and 47 minutes, having missed three chances to wrap up victory deep in the second set.

The 17-year-old junior world No.2 was leading by a set, 5-4, 40-0 only to see those three opportunities vanish and her opponent work her way back into the match.

Having lost that second set 7-5, Liu’s response was admirable though, quickly deleting the memory banks and playing a more water-tight decider than Pennsylvania’s Li, also 17.

Once Liu (above) had opened up a 3-1 advantage in the third, she kept her foot on the accelerator en route to her first junior Grand Slam singles crown.

“It feels amazing,” Liu said. “I just keep smiling all the time. I still can’t even believe it.

“It’s like a dream come true. Being able to play both the French Open and Wimbledon finals is definitely an accomplishment already, win or lose.”

The last 12 months represents a breakthrough period for Liu, who is based at the same facility as men’s semi-finalist Sam Querrey, the StubHub Center at California State University, just outside Los Angeles.