- 28-year-old was unable to push through against number-two seed Krejcikova
Harriet Dart cut an increasingly frustrated figure in her cagey three-sets defeat to last year’s Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova at Eastbourne, and at one point appeared to start crying as she crashed out of the tournament.
The British star has struggled for form this grass-court season, having exited last week’s Wimbledon tune-up tournament Nottingham in the first round at the hands of fellow Briton Fran Jones.
The world No 124 would have been keen for a deeper run on the south coast, but after a first set strewn with rain delays, the 28-year-old was behind.
Battling back in the second, Dart navigated a choppy tiebreak as Krejcikova grappled uneasily with the windy conditions on Centre Court.
But despite claiming an early break in the third and serving for match point, Dart was unable to close out the game, and was broken by the number-two seed to bring up 5-5.
Hunting for the immediate break back, after hitting the ball out of play Dart let out a shriek so loud that some in the crowd instinctively laughed before offering consoling support to the player.
Moved by the possibility of the win slipping away, Dart appeared to become emotional, wiping her face as she waited to return serve.
When Krejcikova then pulled off the vital hold and both players headed to their chairs at the change of ends, Dart put her towel over her head for much needed privacy.
She later wiped her face as she made her way back onto court in a bid to salvage the tie.
But Dart was unable do so, with Krejcikova eventually triumphing 6-3, 6-7 (4-7), 7-5.
Furious at the end of the match, Dart smashed a ball into the court before shaking Krejcikova’s hand, and exchanged a stream of terse words with her player box by the side of the court before leaving the stadium.
Dart has been handed a wild card at this year’s Championships, and will hope to improve on her journey at last year’s tournament, which saw her exit in the third round to Wang Xinyu.
Her second-round clash, with came against her compatriot Katie Boulter, notably saw her overcome with tears in the third-set tiebreak, but Dart gritted her teeth and went on to win the contest.
