Watson finds her identity in win back on the grass courts of Nottingham

Monday 10 June 2024

Heather Watson turned around her game against Kayla Day with a scintillating second set on the way to a win on a return to her favourite surface.

Watson made the semi-finals in last year’s Nottingham Open, and back on those grass courts again, she cut a very different figure to the one that was struggling on the clay.

???? @HeatherWatson92 gets an opening round WIN at the #RothesayOpen Nottingham!#BackTheBrits ???????? pic.twitter.com/fI1dUacNiX

— LTA (@the_LTA) June 10, 2024

“When I come onto the grass, the first day of practice, I just felt at home, I felt I knew my identity as a player again,” said Watson in her post match interview.

“It’s just such a joy to play at home and us Brits are so lucky to have a whole chunk of the season here at home. I’m looking forward to my next match and hopefully I just keep on getting better.”

American Day, who was making her main draw debut on grass, took the first set 6-4 on a cold and windy day.

It was then that Watson switched her mindset.

“I definitely started the match tentative, quite nervous, kind of pushing balls,” she said.

“Then the second set I just sort of totally reset and regrouped and decided if I’m going to go out it’s going to be the right way. So I started to really go after my shots, I found the rhythm on my serve, I tried to come forward more because I think that’s one of my sets, coming to the net.”

She took the second set to love in just 26 minutes.

The match then went with serve with only hints of opportunities, before Watson turned the screw.

She held her serve to love, closing out with an emphatic ace, to put the pressure on Day to hold.

Day double faulted on the opening point, before Watson put herself within two points of the win with a low, hard cross court forehand.  

Day took the next point, but then a fortunate deflection off the net from a Watson return left her stranded and facing match point.

Watson showed no nerves as a long rally ensued and moved her opponent around the court to carve open an easy forehand winner.