Sports

Britain’s best women’s tennis played two matches, suffered a horror fall, and beat the world number one — all in a single day

Johanna KontaJohanna Konta.Mike Hewitt / Getty Images

Britain’s number one tennis player Johanna Konta had an eventful day on Thursday.

Konta began her day with a more than two-hour long win over French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko at the Eastbourne International tournament.

Then, in the evening, she overcame a horror fall to triumph over world number one Angelique Kerber in a straight sets quarter-final.

Konta became the first British woman to defeat the best player in the world since Sue Barker beat Chris Evert in 1979.

But the victories may have come at a cost. On Friday morning, she was forced to withdraw from the Eastbourne semi-final against Karolina Pliskova because of a “thoracic spine injury,” according to Press Association.

It is not clear whether the injury is related to her fall on Thursday. On her third match point against Kerber, Konta — who had previously complained about a slippery surface — appeared to twist an ankle before banging her head.

“I’ve got a bit of a sore head,” Konta said, according to the Guardian. “It was a busy afternoon.”

Here’s a video of the fall:

#ICYMI :tennis:| Johanna Konta’s big Thursday:

Beats French Open Champion

Recovers from this fall :boom:

Beats World Number 1 pic.twitter.com/Oo1ch2euxV

— William Hill Betting (@WilliamHill) June 30, 2017

Konta received medical treatment on the court:

Johanna KontaMike Hewitt / Getty Images

Before Konta’s victories over Kerber and Ostapenko, former number one British tennis player Tim Henman had touted her as one to keep an eye on at Wimbledon.

“Konta — who has had good results for the last couple of years — must be up there,” Henman told Business Insider. “It would be fantastic for her and the tournament if she did well.”

Her latest injury leaves her Wimbledon hopes in jeopardy.

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