Saturday Interview: O'Brien hopes to shine during summer after toughing it out

The BBC television presenter's unexpected 1976 French Open success apart, a trip to Roland Garros is predominantly written off as a chance to get a little grand slam experience and catch a bit of sun.

That perception, however, could be about to change.

For the first time in 18 years, Britain has three women in the main draw of the year's second major, with Beverley's Katie O'Brien among them.

It is hardly something to be shouting from Parisian rooftops about, but in a British tennis landscape dominated by one talented Scotsman, it is an achievement worthy of note.

Anne Keothavong and Elena Baltacha complete a trio of women who are elevating each other through modest success, and defying the critics who use Murray's sole success as a stick with which to beat the Lawn Tennis Association.

Officials of the LTA were scrambling for the first boat back to France on day two of Wimbledon last year when all but Murray and Baltacha fell at the first hurdle of the governing body's home championships.

Tennis in Britain is not inclusive of all classes, is the accusation, one that is given further clout by Britain's terminal Davis Cup decline, a bi-product of a shallow talent pool.

But O'Brien – who broke into the world's top 100 for the first time at the turn of the year – believes the tide is slowly turning and that the LTA deserve credit.

"I don't come from a particularly wealthy background, my family are middle class," said the 24-year-old whose career began on the Junior ITF tour when she was 15.

"Yes, the LTA have helped me massively throughout my career. But the funding is out there, provided your talented enough and determined to work hard at it.

"The LTA has come on a lot with it's talent spotting, and they're doing their best.

"The thing that really frustrates me is that the British public only judge tennis on what happens in the Wimbledon fortnight. They forget there is another 11 months of the season.

"But it's a long process, perhaps five to 10 years. There's been a lot of coaching changes at the LTA over the last two years, so it's not going to happen overnight.

"Andy Murray has helped raise the profile of the sport.

"But there's also Elena Baltacha who has had a good year, Anne Keothavong has come back from a knee injury, and there's a lot of juniors coming up through the ranks. Standards have raised across the board.

"Having the three of us pushing each other makes the targets we set that much more realistic. It's a healthy rivalry between us."

O'Brien's ascension has been steady if unspectacular, but she is at last progressing into the bigger tour events after years grinding out a living on the second-tier ITF Tour.

She makes her second appearance at Roland Garros this week having succeeded only once in advancing through the gruelling week-long qualifiers.

Her invite into the main draw came courtesy of reaching a career-high No 84 in the world in February, and follows similar recognition at the Australian Open earlier this year when O'Brien reached the second round of a grand slam for only the second time.

Jelena Jankovic ended her chances in Melbourne in straight sets, and life for the former Woodhouse Grove School pupil since has not been easy as she adjusts to the double-edged sword existence of being a low-ranked player on the top step of the ladder.

"A new ranking got me into a lot higher standard of competition which made every match really tough, and I had to prepare for that," said O'Brien, who was yesterday paired with veteran American Jill Craybas in the first round.

"It's been a tough couple of months but hopefully I'll have better times this summer.

"All players go through dips in form, I just put mine down to the fact that it's sometimes difficult to adapt to the position you're in.

"Hopefully in the long run it is making me a better player."

Of the four grand slams, the French is the one least suited to O'Brien and the British players who grow up on hard or grass courts.

Barker was a clay-court specialist in the 1970s, an exception to the norm, but even her French Open triumph came amid a succession of second and third-round defeats in the slams.

"The grand slams are huge tournaments and are a nerve-racking experience," explained O'Brien, who was a little more fortunate in the draw than Baltacha, who will play eighth seed Agnieszka Radwanska, and Keovathong, who meets No 14 Flavia Pennetta.

"So having that experience of being in the main draw at Roland Garros, and winning in grand slams, will stand me in good stead.

"The biggest thing about clay is just trying to get used to the movement and fortunately the courts in Paris are fast so it plays like a hard court.

"I'm glad I'm not playing a top seed in the first round like a Serena Williams (who she could meet in the third round). Having said that, the best time to play the top players is the early rounds when they're at their most vulnerable."

And hopefully, more susceptible to defeat by a British player.

GRAND TIMES: Beverley's Katie O'Brien celebrates her victory against Austrian Patricia Mayr in the first round of the Australian Open, the year's first grand slam, in Melbourne back in January.

KATIE O'BRIEN FACT FILE

n Beverley's Katie O'Brien has won four singles and two doubles titles on the ITF Tour, all on hard courts.

n She has earned career prize money in excess of $425,000.

n Her grand slam record is two wins, nine defeats. She reached the second round at Wimbledon in 2007, and at the Australian Open in January.

n Her highest career ranking was No 84 on February 1, 2010. She is currently No 124.

n O'Brien now lives in London and studies business at the Open University.