Fab Friday falls flat for British women at Wimbledon

Britain's women battled bravely against tough opposition at Wimbledon today.

Elena Baltacha, 24, put in a gutsy performance as she took the 20th seed, China's Shuai Peng, to three sets on Court 18 but eventually lost 4-6, 6-2, 7-5.

Teenager Laura Robson faced the biggest test of her career against Maria Sharapova and lost in straight sets 7-6, 6-3 despite taking an early lead in the first set.

With Andy Murray also in action it was the first time in years a trio of Britons were still flying the flag on the fifth day of the competition.

The British Number one was set to take on Croat Ivan Ljubicic on Centre Court. Hundreds watched on the big screens as "Murrayfield" was for once bathed in sunshine.

School friends Harriet Barr, Nina Cliff and Jess Smith from Bournemouth, arrived in London yesterday lunchtime to queue for tickets. The 16-year-olds said they were torn by choosing who to watch, but finally plumped for £68 tickets to see Murray against Croat Ivan Ljubicic on Centre Court. Harriet said: "It was a really tough decision as we want to support Robson as well, and it would be a great match to watch, but the advantage with being on Centre is we also get to see Roddick."

Robson was due to play yesterday, but delays due to the weather again blighted the 17-year-old, who for the second time this week was told her match would be postponed.

Having labelled the match organisation "a shambles" on Monday, she told her fans on Twitter yesterday: "My match has just been cancelled! Going to do a bit of gym work then go home and sleep!"

But she still had time to post a photo of herself taking part in the online craze of "planking" - being photographed lying face down in unusual locations.

She wrote: "Overlooking the courts plank. Thank you and goodnight."

Meanwhile, BBC commentator Andrew Castle claimed millionaire Murray's girlfriend Kim Sears, 23, is struggling to find a job. However, a source close to Miss Sears insisted she was "assessing her options" and not "actively" looking for work.