The Guernsey star fought hard throughout against Yulia Putintseva, who is ranked 21 places above the British No. 2 in the world, but eventually succumbed 7-5, 7-6 in Melbourne.
Tough loss for Heather #Watson as she falls to Putintseva 7-5, 7-6 at the #AusOpen. #BackTheBrits 🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/A3b6pMYwu3
— LTA (@the_LTA) January 16, 2018
Watson had a set point during the second-set tiebreak, but she could not convert and Putintseva took it 8-6 to win a lengthy match in 2hrs 16min.
