Harriet Dart in tears after beating Katie Boulter in dramatic all-British Wimbledon thriller

Jacob Fearnley opened proceedings up against seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic on Centre Court.

But it was a battle of the Brits on Court One as Boulter and Dart faced off for the eighth time in their professional careers.

Boulter went into the match as the strong favourite having only lost once to Dart in their previous seven encounters.

The top-ranked Brit is also enjoying her best-ever year on tour having won two titles, including defending her crown in Nottingham last month.

That helped seal her spot as one of the top seeds at Wimbledon for the first time in her career.

But she was always going to face a difficult test against Dart, who many feel could be ranked much higher than she currently is.

There was little to split them in first set and the crowd inside Court One were also divided on which British player to get behind.

Both started out steady on serve with some impressive play before Dart was made to rue three missed break points in the fourth game.

The very next game saw Boulter break Dart's serve and the British No 1 eventually served out to take the first set.

But it was a completely different story in the second as Boulter dropped her level while Dart rose hers to quickly level things up and force a decider.

A pivotal moment came in the fourth game with Dart battling to stop her opponent going a break up.

Dart eventually saved three break points in a game that lasted nearly 15 minutes to keep the set level.

And the world No 94 took that momentum into the next game to create six break point opportunities of her own.

It was Boulter's turn to dig deep as she saved five, but the British No 2 eventually got the job done to take the lead in the third set.

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Dart consolidated the break to take a 4-2 lead, but Boulter broke back to level the set once more.

There appeared to be tears from Dart in the immediate aftermath of losing her advantage as she argued with her box and held her head in a towel to try and recompose herself.

Both missed opportunities to wrap up the match before a championship tiebreak was needed to separate them both and Dart was seen wiping away tears at one stage.

Boulter took the advantage in the tiebreak as she held a 6-2 lead, but Dart incredibly fought back and served out for the match, dropping to her knees as she was overcome with emotion.