Surrey tennis star Melanie South has vowed to crack the women's top 100 world rankings despite her first-round exit at SW19.

South, currently ranked 139th, produced a battling display that fell just short as she slipped to a 6-3, 6-7, 6-4 defeat to Ukrainian 28th seed Alona Bondarenko.

But the Kingston ace refused to be downhearted.

South said: "I'm pretty proud of how I fought out there and I gave it my all.

"I'm so close to breaking through now - not just to the 100 mark but a lot higher.

"I have that belief and once it clicks into place I think I'm going to be pretty good."

South was given cause for optimism with her recent run to the quarter-finals at the DFS Classic in Birmingham.

And she admitted her results over the past few months have given her confidence a real boost.

The 22-year-old said: "This year I have got more consistent with the players I have been beating and how I have been doing in tournaments.

"The results I got in Birmingham have given me a real belief that I can do this.

"I have known for a while that I have the potential to be top 100 but now I have that consistency."

And that belief was certainly on display against Bondarenko as a see-saw struggle saw both players hold the advantage at times.

South fired a first-day best 10 aces, clocked 117mph on her serve and saved four match points but still fell just short.

She added: "I knew I could win this match so I am a bit disappointed.

"My game is pretty aggressive and you just have to tell yourself to go for it.

"It is all about the fractions between winning and losing and if I play these types of matches more often I will get there."