British duo set for top 100

 

Originally published on: 26/02/10 12:50

Baltacha progressed with a 6-3 7-6 (7/3) victory over Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium, while O’Brien beat Germany’s Mona Barthel 6-4 6-2 to book her place.

“I feel like the pressure for points has lifted off me. From here on in I’m going to be so much more relaxed. I’ve proved to myself that I’m a top-100 player,” said Baltacha.

“Having three British women in the top 100 is just going to be fantastic for British tennis.”

Twenty-three-year-old O’Brien added: “The top-100 barrier has been in my head for a while but I’ve tried to put it to the back of my mind and just keep playing. Now I feel like there’s a monkey off my back.

“It’s a great starting point. I’ve played Bally before before but I think it was a long time ago. I’m looking forward to it.

“We’ve both had a great week and I think we’ll just have fun out there.

“If you looked at the situation with British women’s tennis five years ago I don’t think anyone would have believed the strides we’ve made.

“We’ve come such a long way and hopefully we can inspire the next generation as well.”

The new WTA rankings will be announced on Monday, when the pair are set to join British number one Anne Keothavong, currently sidelined with a knee ligament injury, inside the top 100.

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