British No. 1 Katie Boulter Exits Australian Open in Second Round

MELBOURNE, Australia — British women’s No. 1 Katie Boulter suffered a second-round exit at the Australian Open on Thursday, falling to Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova in a hard-fought match at Melbourne Park. The 28-year-old, seeded 22nd, lost 7-6 (7-3), 2-6, 6-2, marking another early Grand Slam departure for the Briton, who has yet to advance past the third round in a major tournament.

Boulter struggled with consistency throughout the match, committing numerous unforced errors. Kudermetova, a former world No. 9 now ranked 75th, capitalized on Boulter’s mistakes to secure the victory. “Obviously losing a match like that hurts, but I’m someone that’s going to keep showing up,” Boulter said after the match. “I’m going to have my moment, I’m sure of it.”

The loss dashed Boulter’s hopes of becoming the fourth British player to reach the third round of this year’s Australian Open, which would have set a national record. Emma Raducanu, Jack Draper, and Jacob Fearnley have already advanced to the next stage.

Boulter entered the tournament on the back of a strong 2024 season, during which she broke into the world’s top 25 for the first time. However, a deep run at a Grand Slam continues to elude her, despite being seeded at the French Open, Wimbledon, the US Open, and now the Australian Open. Before the tournament, Boulter emphasized her focus on performing well at the sport’s most prestigious events, but her early exit underscores the challenges she faces.

“I was thinking straight the whole time. I just don’t think I quite played the way that I wanted to play,” Boulter admitted. Her defeat was particularly disappointing given her strong start to the season, which included pushing five-time major champion Iga Swiatek to the limit in a narrow loss at the United Cup.

Kudermetova, known for her powerful baseline game, dominated the early rallies, racing to a 5-1 lead in the first set. Boulter fought back to 5-4, but Kudermetova regrouped to win the tie-break. Boulter responded strongly in the second set, taking a 4-1 lead and leveling the match. However, she faltered in the decider, failing to convert a break point at 1-1 as Kudermetova won the final four games to seal the victory.

“In the third set, if I had taken a deep breath, or taken two seconds to myself, we could have gone the other way,” Boulter reflected. “It wasn’t as one-sided maybe as the score suggests.”

Kudermetova, who reached the top 10 in late 2022, will now face World No. 2 in the next round, while Boulter will turn her attention to future tournaments in her quest for a breakthrough at a major.