JOHANNA Konta insisted she is happy with the progress she has made through the clay season despite crashing out of the French Open in the first round.
The seventh seed appeared to have a kind draw against world number 109 Hsieh Su-wei as she sought her first main-draw win at Roland Garros.
Konta raced through the first set but then got bogged down in a battle and became thoroughly frustrated as Hsieh ground out a 1-6, 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 victory.
Konta is not nearly as at home on clay as on hard or grass, but this was still a very disappointing result.
The 26-year-old said: “My expectations are never results-orientated. Whether I’ve lost first round or third round or quarters, I do my best to not judge myself on that aspect.
“Obviously, I like to be involved in a tournament for as long as possible, and I would have liked to have been involved here longer.
“But, in terms of the match that I played and the improvements that I feel I’ve made and that I have spoken to my team about, and we all seem to be on the same page. I do feel I’m a better player at the end of these last few weeks on the surface than I was at the beginning and that is the most I can ask of myself: to keep improving.
“If that doesn’t always come through in results, that’s part of sport. I played a player who played incredibly well, who was inspired, and that’s also something that I’m also very happy to be a part of because it gave me another opportunity to learn about myself and see the things that I can do better.”
It started so well for Konta on a near-deserted Court Philippe Chatrier.
In a first set that lasted just 24 minutes she dropped only four points on serve and hit eight winners, overpowering the slightly-built Hsieh.
But the 31-year-old from Chinese Taipei is a canny and unorthodox player, and her slices and drop shots began to take effect in the second set.
Hsieh missed a routine smash that would have given her a break for 4-3 and Konta looked poised to capitalise when she moved 0-40 ahead at 5-5.
But Hsieh saved the three break points and then won seven straight points to clinch the tie-break and level the match.
Konta’s anguish became more and more evident in the deciding set with imploring looks towards her box.
She could not find the answers to turn the match back in her favour and, after saving four break points, Hsieh sealed the biggest win of her career.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here