NEW YORK: Heather Watson was on the other side of the net in the Wimbledon third-round match of seven summers ago. The Briton had the explicit backing of the home crowd.
When she rallied to level set scores and had game points for a 4-0 advantage in the decider, it got uglier than usual. An opera of visceral sensations, the nag and snag of which perhaps channelled Serena Williams' fightback. But it was Watson who broke at love to take a 5-4 lead.
