Wimbledon 2018: British wildcard Katie Swan loses to Mihaela Buzarnescu in second round

Swan made 27 unforced errors to her opponent’s 15, hit five double faults and held serve only once, but can nevertheless be proud of her week at SW19

Katie Swan will look back on this Wimbledon with plenty of good memories but the youngest Briton in either singles draw was left to regret her mistakes as she lost in the second round here on Wednesday. There was certainly no shame in losing 6-0, 6-3 to Romania’s Mihaela Buzarnescu, but 19-year-old Swan might feel that she could have pushed the world No 28 harder but for a glut of errors in her 74-minute defeat on Court 3.

Swan, whose potent serve is usually her biggest asset, is an aggressive baseliner with sound strokes on both flanks, but on this occasion the world No 204 made 27 unforced errors to her opponent’s 15, hit five double faults and held serve only once.

Mistakes are inevitable for a player who always looks to attack, but too many of Swan’s came at crucial moments. The Briton hit more winners than Buzarnescu – 15 to 13 – but the Romanian was the more consistent ball striker. Even on the rare occasions when she tried to get into the net her approach shots were usually too short, which gave Buzarnescu opportunities to pass her.

“I definitely felt nerves going out there, which I think is a good thing, because it meant I really cared and I still wanted to win,” Swan said afterwards. “Even after winning my first match, I wanted to keep going in the tournament.

“Unfortunately I didn't play my best today, but I have to give credit to her because she really didn't give anything to me. In the first set it was tough, really tough, but there are still a lot of positives I can take from this week.”

Swan, who has been mentored by Andy Murray since she signed with the Scot’s management company at the start of this year, had dropped only four games in recording her first main-draw victory here in the previous round against another leading Romanian, Irina Camelia-Begu, the world No 36.

By the end of play on Tuesday just four of the 12 Britons who had made the start line in singles were still in the race. Kyle Edmund, Johanna Konta and Katie Boulter are all scheduled to play their second-round matches on Thursday, which left Swan as the only British singles player in action on the third day.

At 30 Buzarnescu is 11 years older than Swan, but until last year it was the Briton who had the greater Grand Slam experience. The Romanian had never played in the main draw of either a Grand Slam or a main-tour event until last year’s US Open, whereas Swan made her Wimbledon debut here two years ago.

For years Buzarnescu’s career was dogged by injuries, but when she finally hit a run of good health and fitness last year she took full advantage of it. In the last 13 months she has played 117 matches and recorded more victories (87) than any other player on the professional tour. Having started last year ranked No 377 in the world, she is now at a career-high position of No 28.

Buzarnescu had lost in qualifying in both her previous attempts to play here, in 2012 and 2017, and was made to work for her first victory on these courts on Monday when she was taken to three sets by Aryna Sabalenka, the runner-up to Caroline Wozniacki in Eastbourne last week.

The first set against Swan, which took half an hour, was closer than the score suggested, but Buzarnescu’s consistency was the difference, while the Briton paid for her mistakes. Swan had game points in the fourth game, which she lost after hitting two successive double faults, and lost the set when she was broken to love, Buzarnescu hitting a well-judged drop shot on the final point.

Swan, to her credit, responded well at the start of the second set. A missed forehand by Buzarnescu gave the Briton her first break point in the opening game, which she converted immediately by forcing the Romanian into another forehand error, to loud cheers from the supportive crowd.

Katie Swan fought hard in the second set but it wasn't enough (Getty ) (Getty)

When Swan went 40-30 up in the following game it seemed that the Briton might be turning the tide, only for her serve to let her down again. She double-faulted on game point and then netted a forehand before Buzarnescu took the game with a backhand cross-court pass winner.

After another break of serve Buzarnescu went 4-1 up, but once again Swan rallied. The Briton finally held serve for the first time at the sixth attempt and then broke again to put the set back on serve.

Just when she needed a good service game to level at 4-4, however, Swan started the next game with a double fault and never recovered. In the following game Buzarnescu hit a backhand long on her first match point but made no mistake with the second when she cracked a backhand winner down the line.