US Open: Laura Robson cut short her holiday to qualify and set up Battle of Britain with Naomi Broady

LAURA ROBSON ditched a holiday in Italy then set up a Battle of Britain in New York.

The former British No 1 had given up hope of a wildcard into US Open qualifying.

class="wp-caption alignnone"

So she flew back across the Atlantic to join pals on a summer getaway after winning an event in Pennsylvania this month.

But within hours she was back on a plane and three wins later, Robson is in the first round at Flushing Meadows.

There she will take on fellow Brit Naomi Broady on Tuesday.

Robson, 22, said: “It was one of those things where I sort of knew in the back of my mind it was going to happen because as soon as you plan for it not to, it does.

class="wp-caption alignnone"

class="wp-caption alignnone"

“I landed in Italy at 9am, went up Vesuvius, did a bit of Pompeii and went straight back to the airport, so I had a great time.

“I dropped my friends off at the villa, which was amazing, and then turned around and came back.

“It’s funny. I’ve played so many British people over the last few weeks in the Challengers that as soon as I saw Heather Watson and Naomi Broady had drawn qualifiers, I just had that feeling that I was going to play one of them.

“Naomi’s playing pretty well. She’s got a big serve and a big forehand so I’m just going to try and get as many returns in as possible.”