LONDON -- Two years after almost being forced into an early retirement from tennis, British wildcard Katie Swan hailed the biggest win of her career after reaching the second round of Wimbledon and keeping alive hopes of a fairytale Centre Court appearance.
Swan, 27, who admitted to being "very emotional" on being granted a wildcard entry for this year's tournament, beat Romania's Irina-Camelia Begu in straight sets, in her first Wimbledon match since 2023.
It was the culmination of a rollercoaster few years for Swan, who contemplated quitting professional tennis two years ago due to chronic back injuries which saw her briefly pause her professional career.
Swan's 6-4, 6-4 victory over Begu also ended Britain's wait for a home winner after a miserable opening day and Katie Boulter's surprise exit earlier on Tuesday.
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When asked where the win ranked in her career, Swan said: "I honestly think it's probably number one today."
It was her first Wimbledon victory since beating Begu in the first round in 2018, aged 19.
"It was pure relief being able to finish that match," she said
"It's been a rough few years for me, getting back to a point where I can play a slam again. I played Begu here eight years ago, and that was the last time I won a match here. It's kind of full circle to play her again and win again today. So it means a lot."
Swann was a roared on by a loud home crowd on Court 16 in what was an overdue victory for home players.
Big-name hopefuls Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu both pulled out ahead of the tournament due to injuries.
Swann's friend and compatriot Boulter suffered a shock exit at the start of Tuesday's play to teenage qualifier Tyra Caterina Grant.
Swann will face American 26th seed Madison Keys in the second round and will now wait to see whether she ends up on one of the All England Lawn Tennis Club's show courts -- which most famously includes Centre Court.
"That would be an unbelievable experience for me to play on Centre," she said when asked about the possibility.
"I think the biggest court I have played on is [Court 2], against Bencic a few years ago.
"I'll be happy with whatever court I get. Playing at Wimbledon is amazing in itself.
"I guess I'll wait and see what the schedule says. I mean, yes, obviously playing on Centre would be a dream."
A Centre Court match-up would be a remarkable outcome for Swann, who reluctantly considered careers away from playing tennis at the worst of her injury struggles.
"I definitely did start kind of looking into stuff," she said.
"I did some coaching in the U.S. I think it was hard for me really to move past tennis, because in my head, I didn't really want to stop. I just felt like it was being forced on me because of my back issues.
"So that was kind of hard that emotionally I didn't really move past being able to play, because I never fell out of love with the sport. I just couldn't stay healthy for long enough.
"I think in the back of my mind, I was trying to enjoy coaching and do what I could to earn some money, but it was not really fulfilling for me in that moment, and I knew there was a lot more I could still give if I could just find a way to resolve my health issues.
"So I'm really glad I got through that."