MADRID: British number one Katie Boulter has made her name known once again by claiming her first-ever WTA Tour clay-court victory at 28 years old. This marks a major milestone in her sporting career, as clay courts have been a more challenging surface for her.
Boulter secured her place in the second round of the Madrid Open with a final scoreline of 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, having a commanding win over Czech player Katerina Siniakova. This win highlighted her growing versatility across different surfaces, marking the beginning of a new chapter in a surface she once deemed difficult.
Furthermore, Boulter, currently ranked world number 40, is making her way at the WTA 1000 tournament in Madrid, leading up to the French Open.
The athlete told BBC Sport: “I’ve always known clay is going to be my toughest surface, but I never really gave myself the chance to play well on it and build on it… With injuries and the timing of them, last year was my first clay-court season.”
She added, “I felt my level last year was really improving. I got unlucky not to beat [Paula] Badosa in the first round of the French Open—and I felt I deserved more from last season.”
“I hope I can show that—even if not this week or next week—I can play well on clay… You see a lot of big ball-strikers playing well and I asked myself why it can’t be me.”
In a social media post shared by LTA, it says: “Beautifully done” by @katiecboulter in Madrid 💡⭐️”
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Netizens commented on the post and said: “Wow that’s incredible” and “Katie is definitely getting used to the clay. That was a tough match she came through keep rocking 👌🏽😎”
Boulter will now battle against Italian sixth seed Jasmine Paolini in the second round, which will be a tough opponent. Paolini reached the French Open final last year.
Boulter to fight for British number one spot
Boulter fights to maintain her spot as Britain’s number one female tennis player, with Emma Raducanu and Sonay Kartal now getting close to her ranking.
Boulter has held the top spot in the UK since June 2023, but her world ranking has slipped due to a stop-start season. Meanwhile, Raducanu rose to 49th after making it to the Miami quarter-finals last month, while Kartal’s rapid progress moved her up to 60th.
With this, Boulter expressed: “I don’t feel any pressure at all… I’m very comfortable in the seat that I am, and I know that every single person has a different journey and my journey is not going to be compared to anyone else’s—I’m proud of that.”
“I’ve been the British number one for two years, it’s been a fair while now. It’s something which I’m quite used to,” she added.