Sonay

Age: 29 Ranking: 55 Strength: Forehand

British number two Katie Boulter, appearing in the BJK Cup for the seventh year, brings some much-needed experience to Anne Keothavong’s side.

She won her singles match against Germany in April’s qualifying event but lost in the singles against the Netherlands, before she and Jodie Burrage teamed up to win the decisive doubles match and clinch Britain’s finals place.

It has, however, been a mixed 2025 for Boulter.

She missed some tournaments early in the year with a foot injury before claiming a maiden clay title at a WTA 125 event in Paris.

A second-round defeat at the first women’s Queen’s event for 52 years was part of a difficult grass-court season, and Boulter relinquished her two-year reign as British number one to Raducanu as a result.

She achieved a fourth career win against a top-10 player – defeating Paula Badosa in the Wimbledon first round – but lost to lucky loser Solana Sierra in the next.

Boulter did not make it past the second round at any of the four Grand Slams, admitting at Wimbledon that her “moment might not come”.

But Boulter has often highlighted her love of competing for her country, with the BJK Cup bringing out the best in her.

That was in evidence against Japan on Thursday as she dropped just three games in a straight-set win over Moyuka Uchijima to secure Britain’s semi-final spot.

British pair Sonay Kartal and Katie Boulter were knocked out in the US Open first round as conditions heated up in New York.

Kartal, who has been managing a knee niggle in recent months, suffered physically in a 6-3 1-6 6-1 defeat against Brazilian 18th seed Beatriz Haddad Maia.

A bizarre deciding set saw a struggling Kartal trail 3-0 before being handed a lifeline when Haddad Maia’s movement also became hampered – seemingly down to cramp.

Points became slow and laboured in testing conditions – but neither player refused to give in.

Haddad Maia lost serve for 3-1 as she could barely walk but recovered sufficiently, helped by the vocal support of a boisterous set of Brazilian fans, to serve out a remarkable victory.

Kartal, who was making her debut in the US Open main draw, also appeared to be struggling with the knee problem which she had strapped during her memorable run to the Wimbledon fourth round in July.

Boulter, 29, lost 6-4 6-4 to Ukrainian 27th seed Marta Kostyuk as she was unable to turn around her Grand Slam struggles.

The powerful baseliner, who has never reached the second week of a major, has been out of form this season and seemed to lack confidence against Kostyuk.

Saving five match points as she served at 5-3 illustrated how Boulter will not stop fighting and helped her create three break points in the 10th game.

However, Kostyuk recovered to serve out the match and move into the second round.

SONAY KARTAL bowed out of Wimbledon – amid more Centre Court line-calling controversy.

Kartal, the last British player in the women’s singles and making her Centre Court bow under a roof closed for daylight play for the first time this Championships gave her all in a topsy-turvy roller-coaster of a match against Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

3

3

Despite earning a set point in the opener, the 23-year-old Kartal was eventually out-hit as she lost 7-6 6-3 in a two hours and two minutes.

But the BIG talking point was the latest malfunction of the new automatic line-judging system in operation in SW19 for the first time this year.

Just two days after Emma Raducanu publicly called out the AI judging on the All England Club’s showpiece venue, the last British woman left standing was involved in another bizarre incident.

Kartal’s forehand at game point to Pavluchenkova in the ninth game of the opener was clearly out but there was no call from the electronic officials.

With both players perplexed, German umpire Nico Helwerth halted play for three minutes as TV replays showed the non-call was totally wrong.

Eventually, Helwerth announced: “The electronic system was unable to track the last point”, ordering a replay, which saw Pavlyluchenkova volley wildly and eventually lose serve again.

It was a bizarre moment in a strange match, which saw neither player able to dominate on their serve.

Getting her third break – in those circumstances – could have been the springboard to a victory which would have seen her tournament earnings reach £400,000 – compared to her previous CAREER prize money of £333,000.

BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK

But despite a set point, Kartal was unable to serve out before being swept aside in the tie break.

And while the Brighton star bounced back from losing her opening service game in the second set she was crucially broken once more at 2-2, a missed forehand starting to put the writing on the wall.

Kartal refused to give up, asking the ultimate question of her opponent as she made the Russian serve out for the victory.

But Pavlyuchenkova, who matched her 2016 feat of reaching the last eight here in SW19, did not fold. 

Kartal, though, can be proud of her run and she deserved the standing ovation that accompanied her exit.

Pavlyuchenkova, 34, apologised to the home fans after her victory ended Kartal’s dream run.

She said: “Sorry guys. I’d like to thank you for the great energy.

“I understand that she was local and that’s it. But it’s nice to play in a full stadium.”

The Russian added: “I was so impressed with her – but also myself, too.

“I was getting out of breath at one stage but to keep up with these young guys at this age and for me to play at this level is incredible.”

3

Had the ball been correctly called out, Pavlyuchenkova, who had the advantage, would have won the point and taken the lead.

Instead, it was replayed, Kartal won the point and went on to break for a 5-4 lead.

A frustrated Pavlyuchenkova was heard telling the umpire at the changeover: “They stole the game from me. They stole it.”

A spokesperson for the All England Club said: “Due to operator error the system was deactivated on the point in question.

“The chair umpire followed the established process.”

The automated line-calling system, which was introduced at Wimbledon for the first time this year, has been under scrutiny this week, with several players questioning its accuracy and sound level.

Debbie Jevans, chair of the All England Club, said on Friday she was confident in the accuracy of the electronic line calling and in the decision to bring it in.

In contrast, Kartal appears to be thriving at Wimbledon.

The 23-year-old has enjoyed an impressive rise in the last 12 months and beat 20th seed Jelena Ostapenko in the first round – her third win against a top-20 opponent this year. She followed that by powering past Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova 6-2 6-2 to reach the third round.

Kartal is a recognisable presence on the court with her tattoos and distinctly retro tennis kit, and appears to be enjoying playing on the big stage.

Her path to professional tennis is not a well-trodden one, having had to largely self-fund her career, something she credits with helping her to mature very quickly.

“When I was growing up, I kind of did quite a lot of tournaments on my own just because I couldn’t afford to pay a coach week in and week out,” said Kartal, who has climbed around 250 places in the rankings over the past year to 51st.

“I think it was great. It helped me develop as a teenager, grow up super fast, made me much more mature, hold myself accountable to a lot of things.”

Next up for Kartal is a match against French qualifier Diane Parry, who beat 12th seed and world number 15 Diana Shnaider to reach the third round.

The British number three is determined to keep her good form going as she looks to reach the fourth round for the first time.

“I think having a home Slam, I think that’s one arena I really want to perform well in front of the people that mean the most to me, friends and family and everyone,” added Kartal.

“Also, it’s a surface that doesn’t really come naturally to me. I have to really think and adapt my game style, which I think is also going to help me develop beyond this tournament as well.”

Kartal has enjoyed a remarkable rise through the rankings in the past 18 months.

At Wimbledon last year, she arrived as a wildcard ranked 281 in the world and went on to reach the third round.

On her return this year, ranked 230 places above that, she cut a calm and mature figure.

Ostapenko, 28, had beaten Kartal comfortably in the opening round at Eastbourne last week but the Briton maintained her composure as she fell 5-2 behind in the opening set.

A wayward Ostapenko forehand into the net was the catalyst for Kartal to go on and win the next five games, saving set points at 5-4 before motoring ahead to take the set.

Ostapenko was left stunned when Kartal sent a ripping forehand round the net post but the former Wimbledon semi-finalist managed to cut out the errors and take the second set comfortably to level things up.

That said, Ostapenko grew increasingly frustrated throughout the match – muttering under her breath and berating herself while shouting up at her coaches.

Fans in the crowd were also on the receiving end of glaring looks as she complained that they were being too noisy, asking the umpire to tell them to be quiet before shouting at them and raising her arms in exasperation.

But throughout that Kartal remained steadfast and raced through the third set, securing a double break before serving out for an impressive victory.