GB Pro-Series: Katy Dunne on road to the top after Foxhills win

Katy Dunne showed incredible grit, determination, resilience and ambition to win her first pro title at W25 level as the Lexus GB Pro-Series returned to Foxhills for a 14th time. 

The 28-year-old Brit was last in the singles and doubles finals back in 2015 and, following a spell of injuries, was keen to make her mark on the ITF World Tennis Tour, claiming a career-elevating win at the $25,000 event.

Thwarted by rain throughout the week, matches were played between Foxhills and the indoor courts at St George's College, Weybridge. Unfortunately, despite another sell-out hospitality event for finals day, the finals also had to be moved to St George's due to wet weather.

Gosling-based Dunne had knocked out 2022 Foxhills champion, Joanna Garland, in the quarter-final and followed this up with another straight sets victory over Australian third seed, Destanee Aiava, in Friday’s semi-final.

Saturday’s final saw Dunne get off to a fast start breaking serve in the fourth game, which she maintained to capture the first set 6-4. Another fast start in the second saw her develop a 2-0 lead, only to see her Australian opponent, Talia Gibson, reel off five games in a row to ultimately take the second set 6-3.

A highly impressive final set saw Katy capture the title 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.

Following the match and memorable win, Katy said: "This victory is really quite emotional, it’s been a long road back from various injuries, and winning this tile means so much to me. My next goal is to get back to a ranking which gets me into Grand Slam qualifying events"

In the doubles, third seeds Destanee Aiava (Australia) and Rutuja Bhosale (India) had a convincing win in the final with a straight sets victory (6-2, 6-3) over top seeds and Australian partners, Talia Gibson and Petra Hule.

Tournament Director, Richard Joyner, said: "The weather has proven to be a big challenge this week but this didn't put a dampener on some world-class tennis throughout the week. The Foxhills finals day experience is something very special, however, with the wet weather it was not possible to stage the final outdoors with the usual large crowd and entertainment. However, we are very thankful to St George's College for helping us with the indoor courts, without which, we wouldn’t have been able to finish the event".

As one of England’s premier sport and lifestyle resorts, Foxhills is home to 11 tennis courts and this year’s event marked the 14th appearance of the GB Pro-Series, cementing its standing as a prime host venue for professional tournaments. 

Tennis fans from the local area were treated to a week of exceptional tennis, with a fantastic attendance from the club’s members and guests throughout the week despite the unfortunate weather conditions.

VIEW FULL RESULTS/DRAW SHEET FROM THE EVENT