The 22-year-old has been battling undisclosed health problems this year and in April, Kartal shared images of herself lying in a hospital bed posing for the camera with a thumbs up, saying, “Long story short I’m on the mend”.
Following her first round of success at Wimbledon, she said: “I had a scary few months at the start of the year. I said I won’t disclose what it was, but it was health-related. I didn’t think I would be back potentially at all this year.”
However, world No 298 Kartal beat 45th-ranked Clara Burel yesterday afternoon, becoming the first British ladies’ qualifier to reach the third round since 1997. She will now take home at least £143,000, and next faces a clash with number two seed Coco Gauff.
Amir Goshtai, a fellow member of Pavilion & Avenue Tennis Club in Brighton where Kartal began playing at the age of six and still trains, said she is “an absolute inspiration”.
This story is from the July 04, 2024 edition of Evening Standard.
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This story is from the July 04, 2024 edition of Evening Standard.
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