Katie Boulter has endured a controversial start to her Rothesay Open title defense in Nottingham after a marathon run with British teammate Harriet Dart.
The British number one fought back from a set down to win 6-7, 6-4, 7-5 in their first-round match, which saw her opponent fight off a controversial series of The referee then asked the match referee for help.
A furious Dart was locked in an ongoing battle with referee Kelly Rask over a series of calls that went against her, one of which was overturned and another replayed.
Bolt won her first WTA 500 championship in San Diego this year and broke into the world’s top 30 for the first time. She has stayed calm and made progress in difficult circumstances admirably.
She and Dutt played in an equally hilarious quarter-final match in Nottingham last year, in which the defeated Londoner accused Bolt of being unprofessional with some of his net gestures.
This time, the referee was on the receiving end. Dart had an outburst brewing throughout the proceedings after another tight line call went against her towards the end of the second set.
As the exchange with Rask began, Dart said, “The ball was too far. It’s embarrassing. You’re embarrassing yourself.”
Rusk replied, “Harriet, look.”
Dart: “You should be embarrassed.” Then she dropped a ball on the ground six inches behind the line. “It’s right here, no joke, everyone here knows it.”
Rusk: “Harriet stop now or you’re going to get a code. I’ve had enough right now. That’s it.”
Dart then turned to the match referee for help, claiming: “If we watch the replay, I can guarantee you that if the ball goes out of bounds, I will pay you £50,000. I want to shake your hand right now. This is a joke.”
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Dart further tested Rask’s patience, sarcastically checking to see if she had dropped the ball two yards down the line. The tenacious Dutt played some excellent defensive tennis and threatened to pull off an upset after winning 7-5 in the first-set tie-break.
However, Bolt remained calm and did not panic. Although she didn’t perform at her best – windy conditions caused problems with her serve – she still found a way to the finish line.
In the 11th game of the deciding set, Dart’s serve was broken to 30 points, providing her with a chance to win on serve. Dart saved two match points, and Bolt finally saved two match points after 3 hours and 13 minutes.
Heather Watson also made a comeback after losing a set first and defeated American Kayla Day 4-6, 6-0, 6-4.
