Elena Baltacha crashed out of Wimbledon today 2-6, 7-5, 6-3 after serving for the match against Croatia's Petra Martic.
The British No1 had a wonderful opportunity to give the home fans a much needed boost only to lose confidence and the match.
Baltacha, the world No52, is ranked 24 places above her rival but she still suffered her fifth first-round loss in 10 Wimbledon appearances.
The turning point came in the second set with Baltacha serving for the match.
At this point the Briton seemed well in control but her game fell apart as her opponent suddenly started to hit the lines. Baltacha's normally secure serve — which had only offered Martic one break point up to the 10th game — became rushed and inconsistent.
This affected Baltacha's ground strokes and a loose forehand offered a break point which she saved but another error gifted Martic the game and she took full advantage.
After holding her own suspect serve, Martic put more pressure on Baltacha's and while the Scot save one set point, she gave up the set to tie matters after 81 minutes on court.
It had been a dramatic transformation for the Croat who had gone from stroppy, racket throwing 19-year-old to the player who had reached No63 in the world earlier this year.
She screamed in delight rather than despair as she broke Baltacha in the second game of the third set and won six games in a row. While the British player saved four match points, she could not hold out.
