But the 19-year-old is perhaps made of sterner stuff than her contemporaries and lifted the gathering gloom amid bright sunshine on court. She left 78 minutes later having dismantled the Russian No10 seed Maria Kirilenko and with the roar of the SW19 crowd ringing in her ears. Pat Cash, the former Wimbledon champion, immediately predicted Robson would be a top five player on the women's tour and a Grand Slam winner. Before Robson overcame Kirilenko with a swashbuckling display and became the first British woman for 15 years to beat a top 10 player at Wimbledon, the knives were again being sharpened for outgoing Lawn Tennis Association chief executive Roger Draper.
He will step down in September after seven years of fending off criticism over a lack of depth among elite British players and a failure to grow grassroots participation.As he earlier sat watching British women's No2 Heather Watson lose in straight sets to highly rated American teenager Madison Keys, he could have been forgiven for getting that sinking feeling. Ahead of Robson's victory, seven out of eight Brits in action had lost their opening round matches.
