Andy Murray who? Now, Laura's the British hope to watch at Wimbledon... even if she is just 14 years old

13 April 2012

At the ripe old age of 14, Laura Robson today finds herself with the weight of the nation's expectations on her shoulders.

She is the first Briton to reach the final of the Wimbledon girls' tournament since 1984, when Annabel Croft took the title.

If she wins, she will also be following in the footsteps of Switzerland's Martina Hingis, who won in 1994, and France's Amelie Mauresmo, who won in 1996.

Moment of triumph: Laura Robson celebrates reaching the girls' final watched by a crowd of thousands

She will receive a silver cup, but there is no prize money.

Thousands forsook the delights of Henman Hill yesterday to pack Court Three and see Laura beat 17-year- old Slovakian Romana Tabakova.

She had to cope with a spot of gamesmanship when her opponent succeeded in putting her off by serving underarm to boos from the crowd, but cruised through 6-2, 7-5.

New talent: Laura Robson is tipped to be a future star of British tennis after excelling in this year's junior tournament

For the first time in her career she found herself surrounded by security guards as young fans clamoured for her autograph.

But the teenage prodigy is clearly prepared for the pressures which come with being Britain's only hope after Andy Murray was dumped out of the men's singles by Rafael Nadal on Wednesday, and his brother Jamie lost in last night's semi-finals of the mixed doubles with his partner Liesel Huber.

'It's just an overwhelming experience,' said Laura. 'There were so many people watching me today. The crowd and the support is really good.'

She said it felt 'really, really good' to reach a Wimbledon final  -  before admitting she had a crush on Marat Safin, who was losing to Roger Federer on Centre Court.

Today 5ft 7in Laura will play on Court One when she faces 16-year-old Noppawan Lertcheewakarn from Thailand.

Laura Robson shakes hands with Serbia's Bolana Jovanovski after another win

Her opponent is the number three seed while Laura was an unseeded wild card, but few are betting against a home win for the girl who lives a short walk from the All England Club.

Win or lose, Laura already has an invitation to the Champions' Ball tomorrow night and says she is excited about choosing a dress, although she does not know who she will invite as her guest.

Asked if she had her eye on anyone, she said: 'No  -  apart from Safin.'

Ladbrokes is offering odds of 20-1 against her winning the Wimbledon women's title by 2020.

Spokesman David Williams said: 'People are really backing Laura and the odds have plummeted. It's the lowest price we've ever offered for someone so young.'

Born in Melbourne, Laura moved to Singapore at 18 months and to the UK aged six with her family.

She told a packed press conference that her favourite colour was blue  -  and said her strict diet means she has had to cut out a few favourites.

New fans: Laura Robson signs autographs for young fans

'I have to watch what I eat quite a lot with the nutrition,' she said. 'I like pizza, but I don't really get to have it that often.'

Asked what kind of dress she had in mind for tomorrow night's ball, to which all winners and runners-up are invited, she said: 'I'm looking for something a bit simple.

'I remember last year (Jelena) Jankovic wore a bright pink dress. I don't think I'll be going down that route.'

Annabel Croft, who won the title aged 17, commentated on yesterday's match for the BBC.

She said: 'I think Laura is fantastic. There was a packed court there today and she was completely unfazed by it.'

Carl Maes, the Lawn Tennis Association's head of women's tennis, compared Laura to Kim Clijsters, the former world number one, whom he coached from the age of 12 and saw reach the Wimbledon junior final ten years ago.

Maes said: 'She plays at the same level (as Clijsters did) and on grass, perhaps even a bit better.'

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