Laura Robson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Laura Robson

Laura Robson at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships
Country (sports)	United Kingdom
Residence	London
Born	(1994-01-21) 21 January 1994 (age 31) Melbourne, Australia
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Turned pro	2008
Retired	May 2022
Plays	Left-handed (two-handed backhand)
Coach	Martijn Bok (2007–2010) Patrick Mouratoglou (2011) Luke Milligan (2011–2012) Željko Krajan (2012–2013) Miles Maclagan (2013) Nick Saviano (2013) Jesse Witten (2013) Mauricio Hadad (2014–2016)
Prize money	$1,605,607
Singles
Career record	176–166 (51.46%)
Career titles	0
Highest ranking	No. 27 (8 July 2013)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	3R (2013)
French Open	1R (2012, 2013, 2016)
Wimbledon	4R (2013)
US Open	4R (2012)
Other tournaments
Olympic Games	2R (2012)
Doubles
Career record	75–67 (52.82%)
Career titles	0
Highest ranking	No. 82 (17 March 2014)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	QF (2010)
Wimbledon	2R (2009, 2013, 2017)
US Open	2R (2015)
Grand Slam mixed doubles results
Wimbledon	3R (2012)
Team competitions
Fed Cup	13–3
Hopman Cup	F (2010)
Medal record Representing  Great Britain Silver 2012 London Mixed doubles

Laura Robson (born 21 January 1994) is a British former professional tennis player. She started playing on the junior tennis circuit in 2007. A year later, she won the Junior Wimbledon championships at just 14 years old. As a junior player, she also reached the finals of the girls' singles at the Australian Open twice, in 2009 and 2010. She won her first professional tournament in November 2008.

In singles tennis, Laura Robson was the first British woman since Samantha Smith in 1998 to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament. She achieved this at the 2012 US Open and the 2013 Wimbledon Championships. At the 2012 Guangzhou International Open, she became the first British woman since Jo Durie in 1990 to reach a WTA Tour final. She was named WTA Newcomer of the Year for 2012. The next year, she reached her highest singles ranking of world No. 27. In mixed doubles, she won a silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics with Andy Murray. They also reached the 2010 Hopman Cup final together.

Laura Robson faced many injuries during 2014 and 2015. A notable injury was to her left wrist, which is her dominant hand. She had surgery in April 2014, causing her to miss a lot of time on the WTA Tour. When she returned to full-time tennis in 2016, she found it hard to get back to her previous form. She did not return to the top 150 in singles. In July 2018, she had hip surgery. She did not play on the WTA Tour after that. On 16 May 2022, Laura Robson announced she was retiring from tennis at age 28. Since retiring, she has worked as the tournament director for the Nottingham Open in 2023 and 2024. She will also direct a new women's event at Queen's Club in 2025.

Early Life and Junior Tennis Career

Laura Robson was born on 21 January 1994 in Melbourne, Australia. She was the third child of Andrew and Kathy Robson. Her father worked for Shell, and her mother was a sports coach and former professional basketball player. When Laura was 18 months old, her family moved from Melbourne to Singapore. She attended Tanglin Trust School there. They then moved to the United Kingdom when she was six.

Her parents said she started playing tennis "as soon as she could hold a tennis racquet." They encouraged her, and she joined a junior tennis academy at age seven. She signed with a management company called Octagon when she was ten. At age 11, she signed with Adidas and also got a racquet deal with Wilson Sporting Goods.

She worked with several coaches, including Carl Maes from the Lawn Tennis Association. In 2007, she chose Martijn Bok as her coach. Bok noticed her potential, even though she sometimes struggled with her emotions. Laura also began training at the National Tennis Centre. She took school lessons at home while training.

Laura's first tournament on the Junior ITF Circuit was in 2007. She made it to the quarterfinals from the qualifying rounds. She reached the final of two other tournaments and won her first title in October. In early 2008, she reached three tournament finals.

Laura Robson winning the girls' title at Wimbledon

Laura played in her first junior Grand Slam at the Wimbledon girls' event. She was not a seeded player. As the youngest player, she beat the top seed Melanie Oudin. In the finals, she defeated the third seed Noppawan Lertcheewakarn. This win made her the first British player to win the girls' event since Annabel Croft in 1984. The British media called her the "new darling" of British tennis.

After a short time on the main tour, Laura returned to junior play. She was knocked out in the second round of a December tournament. That same month, she played her last junior tournament of 2008, the Orange Bowl. She had to stop playing in the third round due to a stomach strain. At the end of the year, she was considered for the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year award. However, Paralympic swimmer Eleanor Simmonds won.

After recovering, Laura entered the junior tournament at the 2009 Australian Open. She was seeded fifth. In the semifinals, she played against Tara Flanagan, whom she had beaten in the Wimbledon final. Laura won in straight sets, reaching her second Grand Slam junior final. She faced third seed Ksenia Pervak from Russia and lost in straight sets. Laura later said Pervak was more consistent. Her coach, Bok, advised patience. After the tournament, Laura started training with Gil Reyes, who used to train Andre Agassi. She was also named the MCC Young Sportswoman of the Year. She became the top-ranked player on the ITF Junior Tour in April. This happened even though she had not played for two months due to shin splints.

Laura Robson at the 2009 Australian Open, where she reached her second junior Grand Slam final

At the French Open, Laura was the top seed in the junior competition. However, she lost in the second round to Sandra Zaniewska. Laura was the defending champion at Wimbledon, but she lost in the second round to Quirine Lemoine.

Because she was focusing on her professional career, Laura entered the US Open unseeded. She won her first-round match against Ons Jabeur. She then beat the seventh seed Lauren Embree in three sets. She continued to win against Tamaryn Hendler and Lauren Davis. In her semifinal, she played against Yana Buchina of Russia. Due to rain, both the quarterfinal and semifinal were played on the same day. Laura started strong but got tired and lost the match in three sets.

At the junior singles at the 2010 Australian Open, Laura was unseeded. She defeated Belinda Woolcock, Yulia Putintseva, and Cristina Dinu to reach the quarterfinals. She easily beat American Ester Goldfeld to reach her fourth junior Grand Slam semifinal. There, she defeated Kristýna Plíšková of the Czech Republic. In the final, she lost to Kristýna's twin sister Karolína. In the Wimbledon junior singles, she reached the semifinals, losing to Sachie Ishizu of Japan.

Professional Career Highlights

2008: First Professional Title

After her Wimbledon win, Laura made her professional debut. This was at a $10,000 tournament in Limoges, France. She won two matches to enter the main draw. She also won her first-round match but had to stop playing in the second round due to a shoulder injury.

Laura then received a wildcard to play in a $75,000 event in Shrewsbury. She beat the 2007 Wimbledon girls' singles champion Urszula Radwańska. She also defeated the fourth seed Tzipi Obziler. Laura lost in the semifinals to the second seed Maret Ani in three sets. She got another wildcard for a $50,000 event in Barnstaple. There, she lost her first-round match to the seventh seed Angelique Kerber. Kerber later said Laura's playing was "unbelievable."

Her first match on the WTA Tour was at the Luxembourg Open. She received a wildcard but lost in the first round to world No. 42, Iveta Benešová. Returning to the ITF Circuit, Laura entered a $10,000 event in Sunderland. She was the fifth seed. She beat the third seed Laura Ioana Andrei in the quarterfinals. She then defeated fellow British players Tara Moore and Samantha Vickers. She won her first ITF title at 14 years and 9 months old.

2009: Grand Slam Debuts

Laura returned to the junior circuit for the first half of 2009. In June, Wimbledon announced she received a wildcard for the singles event. She played against former world No. 5, Daniela Hantuchová, in the first round. Laura lost, even though she was ahead in the second set. With Georgie Stoop, she also played in the doubles tournament. They reached the second round before losing to the 16th seeds, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Amélie Mauresmo.

In August 2009, Laura also received a wildcard for the US Open qualifying rounds. She defeated Stéphanie Foretz and Anikó Kapros. In the final qualifying round, she lost to Eva Hrdinová, even after leading 4–1 in the third set.

In October, Laura entered the qualifying draw at the Luxembourg Open. She defeated world No. 180, Zuzana Ondrášková, and world No. 79, Julia Görges. In the final qualifying round, she lost to Maria Elena Camerin. In November, Laura beat Yuliya Beygelzimer in the first round of the Minsk ITF event. She defeated Tetyana Arefyeva in the second round but lost in the quarterfinals to Vitalia Diatchenko.

2010: Hopman Cup Final and Doubles Success

Laura Robson during the 2010 Hopman Cup

Laura started the season playing with Andy Murray in the Hopman Cup. This was Britain's first team in the tournament since 1992. She lost her first match to Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan. Later that day, she and Murray won the mixed-doubles match against Kazakhstan. Laura was defeated by Sabine Lisicki but won the mixed doubles against Germany. Laura and Murray defeated Russia to reach the finals. Laura won her first match of the tournament against world No. 26, María José Martínez Sánchez. However, she and Murray lost to Spain's Martínez Sánchez and Tommy Robredo in a very close final match.

Laura received a wildcard for the qualifying draw of the Australian Open women's singles. She defeated Sophie Ferguson in her first match. In her second match, she lost to Michaëlla Krajicek. However, Laura received a wildcard for the main doubles draw, partnering Sally Peers. They defeated Jill Craybas and Abigail Spears. They then beat the 12th seeds Chuang Chia-jung and Květa Peschke. Peers and Robson won their third-round match against Vera Dushevina and Anastasia Rodionova to reach the quarterfinals. They then lost to the No. 15 seeds, Maria Kirilenko and Agnieszka Radwańska.

After the Australian Open, Laura did not play again until April. In her third tournament back, she reached the semifinal of an ITF event in Dothan. She had to qualify for the main draw and then lost to Edina Gallovits. She also played in doubles, reaching the quarterfinals. This helped her reach a career high of No. 102 for doubles. She then reached the quarterfinals in Charlottesville, losing to Anastasiya Yakimova.

She qualified for the main draw of the Aegon Classic in Edgbaston. She beat Nina Bratchikova and Vitalia Diatchenko. Laura then won her first-ever match on the WTA Tour when her opponent Stefanie Vögele retired. She lost to the third seed Yanina Wickmayer in the second round. She also received a wildcard for the Rosmalen Open but lost to Dominika Cibulková in the first round.

She received a wildcard for Wimbledon. She faced fourth seed Jelena Janković and lost in two sets. Laura's next professional competition was a GB Pro-Series event at Woking. She was seeded seventh, her first professional seeding, and reached the quarterfinals. Her next match was at the end of August 2010, when she entered the qualifying tournament for the US Open. In the first round, she surprised the second seed Jelena Dokić. She beat Vesna Manasieva but lost in the third round to Nuria Llagostera Vives.

In September, Laura announced she was splitting with her coach Martijn Bok. This was because Bok could not meet her more demanding tour schedule for 2011.

Laura next competed in the Pan Pacific Open. She beat world No. 57, Anastasija Sevastova, in the first round of qualifying. She reached the main draw by beating world No. 100, Simona Halep. She was defeated in the first round of the main draw by the experienced 31-year-old player Gréta Arn.

2011: First Grand Slam Main Draw Win

For 2011, Laura hired a new coach, Frenchman Patrick Mouratoglou. She moved her training base to Paris. Her season was interrupted by an injury at the Hopman Cup. She did not compete in a tournament until March 2011. Her comeback was then delayed for another month by an injury in her second competition. Returning again at the end of April 2011, Laura's best performance was at the $50,000 tournament at Indian Harbor Beach, Florida. She reached the semifinals there. Laura split from Mouratoglou just before Wimbledon. She then won her first match at a Grand Slam tournament, defeating Angelique Kerber. However, she lost to Maria Sharapova in the second round.

At the US Open, Laura won her three qualifying matches to enter the main draw. In the first round, she was leading when her opponent, Ayumi Morita, retired. She was then beaten by Anabel Medina Garrigues.

2012: Olympic Silver Medal and WTA Final

Laura Robson at the 2012 Open de Cagnes-sur-Mer

Laura qualified for the main draw of the Australian Open for the first time. She beat Melanie Oudin, Anna Floris, and Olga Savchuk. She lost to 13th seed Jelena Janković in the first round.

Laura was chosen for the British Fed Cup team for the first time. She played in the Europe/Africa Group-1 match in Eilat, Israel. In the group stages, she played doubles with Heather Watson. They defeated pairs from Portugal, Netherlands, and Israel. Laura and Watson did not need to play the play-off match against Austria. This was because Anne Keothavong and Elena Baltacha won their singles matches. The team qualified for a place in the World Group-II promotion play-off in April 2012.

Laura lost in the third round of qualifying for the 2012 French Open at Roland Garros. However, she got a spot in the first round of the main draw as a lucky loser when Sílvia Soler Espinosa withdrew. She then lost her first-round match to Anabel Medina Garrigues.

After reaching the second round at the Birmingham Classic, Laura qualified for the Eastbourne International. She reached the second round before losing to Ekaterina Makarova. This result helped Laura enter the top 100 for the first time. In the first round of Wimbledon, Laura lost to Francesca Schiavone in three sets.

Immediately after Wimbledon, Laura entered the Palermo Ladies Open. She reached her first ever WTA Tour semifinal. She beat world No. 240, Valentyna Ivakhnenko, losing only one game. She then surprised the No. 2 seed and world No. 27, Roberta Vinci, in straight sets. This was her first WTA quarterfinal. She continued her good form in the quarterfinal, winning against No. 5 seed, Carla Suárez Navarro, in three sets. However, her run ended when she lost in the semifinals to Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová in three sets. Laura then received a wildcard to enter the main draw of the Swedish Open but lost her first match against Medina Garrigues.

Laura Robson with Andy Murray in the mixed doubles at the 2012 Summer Olympics

Laura received a late spot in the women's singles at the 2012 Olympics. This was due to Petra Martić withdrawing. In her first-round match, she beat world No. 22, Lucie Šafářová, in straight sets. This set up a second-round match with Maria Sharapova. She lost to the Russian world No. 3 in a very close match. She also competed in the doubles with Heather Watson. They lost in the first round to the German pair of Angelique Kerber and Sabine Lisicki. Laura then received a wildcard entry into the mixed doubles with Andy Murray. They played against Czech pair Lucie Hradecká/Radek Štěpánek in the first round and won in three sets. In the second round, they beat the Australian duo of Lleyton Hewitt and Samantha Stosur. They reached the final by beating Germans Sabine Lisicki and Christopher Kas. In the final, they were beaten by the Belarusian pair Victoria Azarenka and Max Mirnyi, earning a silver medal.

Laura had direct entry to the main draw of the US Open based on her WTA ranking. She defeated Samantha Crawford in the first round. In the second round, she defeated former US Open champion Kim Clijsters. This was Clijsters' final singles match before retiring. Laura reached the third round of a major tournament for the first time. She became one of only six players to beat Clijsters at the US Open championships. She was also the first player to beat her there since 2003. She then achieved her first victory over a top-ten player, beating ninth seed Li Na in the third round, in three sets. Laura became the first British female tennis player to reach this stage of a Grand Slam tournament since Samantha Smith 14 years earlier. However, she was defeated by defending champion Stosur, ending her best run at a Grand Slam tournament so far.

Her next appearance was at the Guangzhou Open. She beat world No. 22, Zheng Jie, and the No. 3 seed Sorana Cîrstea. She reached her first WTA Tour final against Hsieh Su-wei. This was the first WTA singles final for any British woman since Jo Durie in 1990. Laura was eventually defeated, even after saving five championship points in the second set and leading 3–0 in the third set. This result pushed her ranking into the top 70 for the first time.

Laura qualified for the main draw of the China Open. She defeated Garbiñe Muguruza and Johanna Larsson. She reached the second round but lost to Lourdes Domínguez Lino in straight sets. At the Japan Women's Open in Osaka, she was seeded eighth. This was the first time she had been seeded at a WTA tournament. She reached the quarterfinals before losing to Chang Kai-chen in three sets. This result ensured she finished the year with a ranking of 53.

In October, Laura was nominated for the Sports Journalists' Association Sportswoman of the Year. In November, she and Heather Watson won "Young Sportswoman of the Year" at the 2012 Sunday Times Sportswomen of the Year Awards. Laura was also nominated for "WTA Newcomer of the Year" and William Hill "Sportswoman of the Year" in November. She won the "WTA Newcomer of the Year" award.

2013: Career-High Ranking

Laura Robson at the 2013 Australian Open

At the start of 2013, Laura reached the top 50 for the first time. She then achieved her first victory at the Australian Open. She had a strong straight-sets win over Melanie Oudin. In the second round, she played former Wimbledon champion, Petra Kvitová. Laura came back after losing the first set to beat Kvitová in a three-hour match. This set up a third-round meeting with Sloane Stephens. After several shoulder treatments, Laura was eventually beaten in two sets. After the Australian Open, Laura played six matches in Fed Cup competition. Great Britain earned a World Group II play-off spot against Argentina. Following this success, she lost two matches in a row. She lost to Daniela Hantuchová in Doha and to wildcard Yulia Putintseva in Dubai.

At Indian Wells, Laura lost her first-round match against Sofia Arvidsson in three sets. Her next tournament was in Miami. In singles, Laura reached the second round before losing to Alizé Cornet. In doubles, Laura was given a wildcard to play with Lisa Raymond. The pair reached the final. They beat the world No. 1 pair of Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci in straight sets in the semifinals. They then lost to Nadia Petrova and Katarina Srebotnik.

Laura was seeded 16th at Charleston. She reached the second round before losing to Eugenie Bouchard in three sets. At the Katowice Open, Laura was seeded eighth, but lost in the first round to Lourdes Domínguez Lino.

Laura represented Great Britain in the Fed Cup World Group II play-off against Argentina. After Johanna Konta lost her first match, Laura easily won her first match over Florencia Molinero. Laura lost her second match against Paula Ormaechea in three sets.

After several first-round defeats at the start of the European clay-court season, Laura defeated world No. 4, Agnieszka Radwańska, in the second round of the Madrid Open. She then lost to former world No. 1, Ana Ivanovic, in the next round, even though she had led 5–2 in the final set. Laura then made her debut at the Italian Open. She defeated Venus Williams in the first round. However, she then lost to Venus's sister, world No. 1 and eventual champion, Serena Williams, in the second round. At the French Open, Laura was beaten in the first round by former world No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki, in straight sets.

To begin the grass-court season, Laura entered the Birmingham Classic. She was seeded seventh. Despite this, she lost in straight sets to the eventual champion Daniela Hantuchová. She then played in the Eastbourne International. In the first round, she faced Yuliya Beygelzimer and won in straight sets. In the second round, she lost to Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets for the second time in a row.

In the first round of Wimbledon, she played against tenth seed Maria Kirilenko. Laura beat her in straight sets. She then beat world No. 117, Mariana Duque, in the second round on Centre Court. In the third round, she came from a set down to beat Marina Erakovic. This allowed her to reach the last 16. There, she was beaten by Kaia Kanepi. Her performance pushed her up to 27 in the world. She was the first British player in the top 30 since Jo Durie in 1987.

Laura started her US Open Series campaign on 30 July 2013 at the Southern California Open in Carlsbad. She played against Ayumi Morita. Laura won after coming back from a set down in two hours and 40 minutes. Laura moved into the second round to face world No. 7 Petra Kvitová from the Czech Republic. She lost in straight sets, ending her Southern California Open.

To start the Canadian Open in Toronto, Laura was supposed to play Yanina Wickmayer on 5 August 2013. However, she had to withdraw due to a wrist injury. The same injury also caused her to withdraw from the tournament in Cincinnati. Her ranking of No. 32 meant she would be seeded at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time. She entered the US Open as the 30th seed.

At the US Open, Laura returned after intense recovery for her wrist injury. She began her campaign against Spain's Lourdes Domínguez Lino, whom she had lost to twice before. After winning a tough first set, Laura easily won the second set. In the second round, she faced world No. 75 Caroline Garcia. She won in two close sets. She then lost in straight sets in the next round to Li Na. This was the same place they had played last year, where Laura had won. The fifth seed Li hit 11 aces to beat Laura in straight sets. After about a three-week break, Laura returned to action at the Guangzhou Open. She had been a finalist there the previous year. She started strong, with straight-sets wins over qualifier Jovana Jakšić and Zheng Saisai. She then lost to another Chinese player, Zheng Jie, even though she won the first set 6–1.

In October 2013, it was announced that Miles Maclagan's coaching partnership with Laura had ended. She planned to take a couple of weeks off and then look for a new coach.

2014–2015: Wrist Injury and Long Break

Laura started her 2014 season at the Hobart International. She had to stop playing in her first-round match against Yanina Wickmayer due to a left wrist injury. Her wrist continued to bother her at the Australian Open. There, Kirsten Flipkens defeated her in straight sets. After three months of rest, Laura had surgery on her left wrist in April. The surgery forced her to miss the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Although Laura initially hoped to play by the end of the season, she only started training in October. She did not play any more matches in 2014.

Laura did not enter the Australian Open in 2015. She then left the WTA rankings because she had not competed for 12 months. Laura planned to return at a $25,000 tournament in Surprise, Arizona. However, she delayed her return and did not enter another ITF event in February. She turned down a wildcard for the qualifying event of the Miami Open in March. Her agent, Eisenbund, said she had not had a setback and was "closer and closer" to returning.

After being away for a year and a half, Laura's first competitive match was in the qualifying draw of the Eastbourne International. She lost to top-seed Daria Gavrilova in straight sets. Laura received a wildcard to compete at Wimbledon. However, she was defeated in the first round by Evgeniya Rodina.

In July 2015, she played at a $50,000 event in Granby. She won a tough three-set match over second seed Naomi Osaka. However, she lost her next match to American qualifier Ellie Halbauer. Laura also reached the doubles final with Erin Routliffe. In Gatineau, she stopped playing in her first-round match. This caused worry that her wrist injury had returned. But Laura said she had been bothered by a stomach strain she got during practice.

2016: Return to Tennis and Challenges

After having more surgery on her wrist at the end of 2015, Laura took more time off from tennis. She missed the Australian Open. She started the year playing some American Challenger events, but with limited success. She returned to WTA Tour events using her protected ranking to enter Indian Wells. She played well in her first round but lost to Magdaléna Rybáriková. Rybáriková later reached the quarterfinals of the event. Laura also received a wildcard entry into the main draw of Miami. She used her protected ranking to enter the qualifying of Charleston but lost in the first round at both events.

Laura later won her first WTA match since her injury in 2013. She beat Klára Koukalová, 6–2, 6–3, in the qualifying of Stuttgart. However, she lost her next qualifying match to Océane Dodin in straight sets. She also got her first WTA Tour main-draw victory since 2013 in Rabat. She defeated local wildcard Ghita Benhadi in straight sets. However, she later lost her next match to Tímea Babos.

Laura also used her protected ranking to enter Premier clay events in Madrid and Rome. She lost her first-round matches to Victoria Azarenka and Christina McHale, respectively. She played well against Azarenka but could not convert many chances to win points. This allowed Azarenka to win in straight sets. Laura received a wildcard for Wimbledon for a second year. However, she was defeated in 69 minutes by Angelique Kerber in the first round.

In August, Laura won a second-tier ITF tournament in the USA. She then received a wildcard entry to the 2016 US Open qualifying tournament. Straight-set victories over Jang Su-jeong, Isabella Shinikova, and Tatjana Maria allowed her to enter the main draw. She lost in the first round to fellow British player Naomi Broady, 7–6, 3–6, 4–6.

After the US Open, Laura lost in the first round in four out of six ITF tournaments. This included a loss to a player ranked 1048.

2017: Continued Struggles

Laura began her 2017 season at the Auckland tournament. She lost in the first round of qualifying to Tereza Martincová. At the Australian Open, she also lost in the first round of qualifying to Amandine Hesse in straight sets. She then played in the $60,000 tournament at Andrézieux-Bouthéon. She reached the quarterfinals before losing in straight sets to Amra Sadiković. Between late January and early May, Laura reached three quarterfinals on the ITF Circuit. Laura won the biggest title of her career at a $60,000 Kurume Cup. She defeated fellow British player Katie Boulter in straight sets. This tournament win moved her up 80 places in the ranking. She reached the top 200 for the first time since 2014.

At the start of her grass-court season, Laura played the $100,000 event in Surbiton. She lost in the first round to Marina Erakovic. She then played at Nottingham, but lost to Julia Boserup in the first round. She reached the second round of the Ilkley $100,000 event before losing to Maryna Zanevska in three sets. She received a wildcard for Wimbledon. However, she lost in the first round to Brazil's Beatriz Haddad Maia.

She continued to struggle with her form in the second half of the season after Wimbledon. She lost eleven matches and won only seven on the ITF Circuit. This included a loss in the first round of the qualifying draw at the US Open to world No. 311, Alla Kudryavtseva.

2018: Hip Surgery

Laura could not play in the Australian Open qualifying draw. Her ranking, at 230, was too low to get direct entry. However, she did play in the first round of the women's doubles draw with CoCo Vandeweghe. They lost in straight sets. The following week, she lost in the first round of the Burnie International to world No. 415, Jennifer Elie. But she won the doubles title partnering Vania King.

In March, Laura teamed up with Fanny Stollár to win the doubles at the ITF event in Yokohama. In July 2018, she had hip surgery.

2019–2022: More Hip Problems and Retirement

After eight months recovering from surgery, Laura returned to tennis on 12 February. This was at a $60,000 event in Shrewsbury. She lost to Kathinka von Deichmann in three sets. Laura's world ranking at this point was 511. She then entered the Bolton $25,000 qualifying tournament in April. She reached round two before losing to Tara Moore in straight sets. The following week, Laura entered the Sunderland $25,000 qualifying. She beat Ellie Tsimbilakis in straight sets and Alicia Barnett in a match tiebreaker to qualify for the main draw. This was her first main-draw appearance after her comeback. She won her first-round match in a close three-setter. However, she eventually lost to fellow British player and top seed Harriet Dart. She had to stop playing before the second set. This injury was not considered serious, and Laura said she planned to play some tournaments in about two weeks.

Despite this, Laura did not play again for the rest of the year. In December, she announced she had decided to have another operation on her hip.

After missing all of the 2020 and 2021 seasons due to ongoing injuries and multiple hip surgeries, Laura Robson announced her retirement from the sport in May 2022. This was shortly before the 2022 French Open.

Playing Style

Laura Robson played left-handed, using a two-handed backhand. One of her strengths was her powerful serve. She played strongly from the back of the court and was also known for her aggressive forehand return. However, some people noted her "poor lateral movement" and an inconsistent second serve, which led to many double faults. She was praised for showing "extraordinary poise" and having "the attitude and technique required of a leading player." Commentator Simon Reed said she "has every tool she needs." Former Grand Slam champion Pat Cash called her "a special talent" who "seems to have all the attributes to progress." Former WTA player Ana Ivanovic said Laura "hits the ball really, really hard." Former top British player Samantha Smith said that "she doesn't have any weaknesses at all." Serena Williams stated that Laura is an "all-around good player." Laura's favorite surface to play on was grass, and her favorite shot was her forehand down the line.

Career Statistics

Olympic Games Final

Mixed Doubles: 1 (Silver Medal)

Result	Year	Location	Surface	Partner	Opponents	Score
Silver	2012	London	Grass	Andy Murray	Victoria Azarenka Max Mirnyi	6–2, 3–6, [8–10]

Grand Slam Tournament Performance Timelines

Singles

Junior Grand Slam Finals

Singles (1–2)

Result	No.	Date	Tournament	Surface	Opponent	Score
Win	1	3 July 2008	Wimbledon	Grass	Noppawan Lertcheewakarn	6–3, 3–6, 6–1
Loss	1	31 January 2009	Australian Open	Hard	Ksenia Pervak	3–6, 1–6
Loss	2	30 January 2010	Australian Open	Hard	Karolína Plíšková	1–6, 6–7(5–7)

See also

In Spanish: Laura Robson para niños