| Katie Swan on the rise | |
|---|---|
| Swan is Britain’s youngest Fed Cup player at 16 years and 316 days | She reached the Australian Open girls’ final in 2015 and ended the year ranked third in juniors |
| She was born in Bristol but is based in Kansas, USA, where her family relocated in 2013 | Swan is the current British number 10 at 524 in the world |
| Swan won her first senior titles on the ITF circuit in Egypt and Spain last year | Denise Panagopoulou of Greece is the youngest ever Fed Cup player – 12 years and 360 days in 1977 |
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Teenager Swan wins on Fed Cup debut
- Updated: February 4, 2016
Katie Swan became Great Britain’s youngest Fed Cup player at the age of 16 as she helped her team to victory over South Africa in Eilat, Israel.
The teenager, ranked 524th, defeated Ilze Hattingh 6-3 6-0 to give Britain a 1-0 lead in their first tie at the Europe/Africa Group 1 tournament.
Heather Watson beat Channel Simmonds 6-3 6-3 to open an unassailable 2-0 advantage in the best-of-three tie.
Britain must win three ties to secure a World Group II play-off in April.
Captain Judy Murray selected Swan to play singles after Australian Open semi-finalist and British number one Johanna Konta withdrew because of illness.
Swan, who reached the Australian Open junior final last year, was ranked 126 places higher than 19-year-old Hattingh and beat her in just 55 minutes.
“I was really excited to play but I was also a bit nervous, which was showing in the beginning, but I managed to relax after a few games and I started playing really well,” Swan told the Fed Cup website.
“It’s just amazing to get to play for your country – for me it’s the best thing in tennis representing your country.
“British tennis is doing amazing. We have the Davis Cup boys who just won and obviously Jo and Andy (Murray) and Jamie (Murray) doing so well in Australia. It’s inspired the whole team.”
Watson, ranked 85th, was a comfortable winner over world number 317 Simmonds in the second singles, with Jocelyn Rae and Anna Smith looking to complete a 3-0 victory for Britain in the doubles.
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