National allegiance was set aside yesterday as a relieved Kyle Edmund came through the battle of the Brits to claim his first ever win on the Wimbledon grass.

The 22-yearr-old Davis Cup player was clearly nervous as he fell a set behind to compatriot Alex Ward, ranked 869th in the world, but he drew satisfaction from a match he dominated from that point, running out a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 winner.

“Just because you're British, it's the one tournament you want to do well in more than any other tournament, I guess,” he said.

“As a kid, you watch this sort of event. To actually say that I've won one now is nice to say, in terms of like a professional tennis point of view.”

However he was quick to place that in perspective.

“I mean, it's just one match,” Edmund continued.

“It's important not to get so high from the win. You try not to get so low from a loss. But like you said, it's definitely nice to do it. I've had enough losses, so it's nice to actually win a match.”

Edmund said the prospect of facing a compatriot had not been a major consideration, but admitted that he had been concerned about the momentum his opponent carried into the match.

“Anyone who's qualified has played matches,” he noted.

“I've played Brits in the past, though. I played Andy (Murray) a couple times, played Evo (Dan Evans) a couple times and I've been around the guy, so it wasn't so awkward in that sense.

“I get on well with Wardy off the court. He's a really nice guy. Then once you go on the court, you have to get on with it and play for yourself.

“I get on with guys that are not British, too. Like I get on with some Aussie guys, there's a few American guys I get on with well.

“When you go on court, everyone knows it's just head down, get on with it really. Once you get off the court, then you can be mates again.”