Huge step forward for me – Boulter
KATIE Boulter rated her week in Birmingham as a “huge step forward” after losing to former Wimbledon champion Simona Halep in the quarter-finals.
The British player claimed the best win of her career by ranking against Alison Riske in the first round and then knocked out the former top-ten player Caroline Garcia, but second seed Halep showed her class in a 6-4, 6-1 victory on Friday.
Boulter admitted: “I’m always probably my biggest critic, so for the moment it will be difficult for me to say I’m feeling pretty good but, as my coach reminded me, I would have signed for this two weeks ago, three weeks ago, four weeks ago, so I cannot complain.
“I know I’m going to be very positive about this week. It’s a huge step forward for me. I’ve played some of my best tennis. I think I can be playing these weeks week in, week out, and that’s where I want to be.”
Boulter, who only returned from nearly three months out with a leg injury in Nottingham last week, matched her opponent for the first eight games, but Halep broke down her opponent’s power game, and Boulter lost five service games in a row.
The 25-year-old Briton has been given wild cards for Eastbourne this week and Wimbledon the week after, while her performances in England’s second city will see her ranking rise to 127. She has a career high mark of 82.
But her sights are set much higher, if her body will cooperate, and Boulter said of Halep: “She’s clearly one of the best players out there. So, for me to be able to stand out there and feel like I can compete and win the match – I really did feel if I brought a bit more, then it would have been closer and it would have been a tough match for both of us.
“To play someone of that calibre, it’s important for me to do that week in, week out because that’s when I’m going to get my results.
“Especially the grass where I can use opportunities with wild cards, that’s really important to me because it helps me skip a couple of levels and get back to where I want to be.
“But I’ve been edging closer each time I’ve been back from injury and hopefully now I can be here to stay.”