Johanna Konta’s fairytale in New York came to an end as she tumbled out of the US Open following a straight sets defeat to fifth seed Petra Kvitova.
The 24-year-old British No2 had upset the odds to reach the last-16 of a grand slam for the first time, beating seeded pair Garbine Muguruza and Andrea Petkovic along the way.
But two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitova proved an obstacle too far, with the world No97 left to rue a pair of untimely double faults in a 7-5 6-3 defeat.
Konta, who had not been defeated since losing in the first round of this year’s Wimbledon, could not be faulted for her effort but her lack of experience at the highest level was telling.
While she failed to take any of her five break point opportunities in the opening set, her Czech opponent grasped her only two chances, albeit both times from Konta double faults.
The Sydney-born Konta’s previous best showing at one of the four grand slams was a second round appearance at Flushing Meadows three years ago and in the build-up she insisted she would not be overawed by the occasion of tackling one of the world’s leading players.
That certainly seemed the case as a scorching backhand up the line gave her a break point in the opening game but Kvitova managed to hold before Konta then backed up an energetic start by holding to love.
