She’s not yet old enough to have finished her GCSEs, but Hannah Klugman could light up the most famous tennis tournament in the world this summer after moving to just one win of a place at Wimbledon. Klugman, 15, notched a second win in qualifying on Wednesday, seeing off Czech rival Linda Fruhvirtova 6-2 0-6 6-4.
The British sensation showed great resilience after losing the second set to love, against an opponent ranked 376 places above her.
And her date with destiny will come on Thursday, when she takes on Alycia Parks with a scheduled 1pm start.
The American is eight years her senior and will be the clear favourite, boasting a WTA ranking of No.121 while Klugman remains down at 623. But the home players will again be backed by a vociferous crowd, with British fans desperate to have heroes to laud this month as doubts grow over the Wimbledon involvement of Andy Murray.
And the young star is at least in familiar surroundings. Brought up at SW19, the Wimbledon High School student has grown up learning tennis in the vicinity of the famous grass courts.
Only last year, she reached the doubles final at Junior Wimbledon, with her and Isabelle Lacy eventually losing out to Alena Kovackova and Laura Samsonova. But she admitted her current experience had surpassed any of her previous achievements.
“I’m speechless,” she said in their post-match interview. “To get the win was just really good, and it was very emotional. I love being supported with the crowds.
“I do thrive in those sorts of situations. I’m still young so I’m taking it step by step and just accepting some weeks won’t be as good as others, I’m still learning that.”
In December, Klugman rose to prominence when she captured the Orange Bowl title in Florida, aged just 14. Although even if she does beat Parks, her feat will fall just short of a prestigious record.
Reigning US Open champion Coco Gauff remains the youngest modern-day Wimbledon qualifier, aged 15 years and 122 days when she made the main draw 2019. Klugman is currently 15 years and 130 days.
If Klugman can prevail again, she will learn her first round opponent on Friday. The 2024 Championships then get underway on Monday, with Britons Amarni Banks and Sonay Kartal also in the final round of qualifying.
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