Britain’s Harriet Dart marked her HSBC Championships debut with an impressive comeback victory over world No.35 Liudmila Samsonova.
After a long day waiting to get on court thanks to several rain delays, Dart came through 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 in two hours and 48 minutes.
It’s the British wild card’s best win by ranking since defeating Katie Boulter in the second round of Wimbledon in 2024.
The win sets up a tough second round clash with fourth seed and world No.11 Belinda Bencic.
After a disappointing end to the opener – missing on three break points at 5-5 only for her opponent to clinch the set – Dart gave the perfect response in the second.
As the conditions got cooler and the evening drew in, Dart seemed to have the upper hand in the longer exchanges and Samsonova couldn’t make the most of her serve.
The world No.35 faced break points on four out of five of her service games in the set and Dart managed to wrestle momentum in her favour.
Dart’s defence was a particular highlight of her game throughout the first round. Her steal score in the second and third sets – how often a player wins a point from defence – was at 46% compared to the draw average of 35%.
Back on level terms, the British No.5 took an early double break in the decider and was then in a race against the light to get the match done.
However, serving for it at 5-2, she left the door open for Samsonova to come back, suffering her only break of the third set.
Frustration was building for the Briton but Samsonova couldn’t shake her struggles on serve. At 30-30 in the following game, she hit a double fault, followed by a forehand error to give Dart her best win of the season.
Katie Boulter’s match against Leylah Fernandez was interrupted by the light, with the Canadian leading 6-3, 3-3.
