A Harrogate girl representing Great Britain has won a European tennis tournament.

Roberta Gaskell, 12, triumphed at the Babolat Cup European Masters in Lyon last weekend.

She took on players from Spain, Holland, France, Germany and Italy in the under-12s girls competition.

The win follows a string of successes in previous tournaments, including winning the Babolat Cup UK in September last year, when she was up against players representing 15 other counties.

Mel Gaskell, Roberta’s mother, said her daughter was “over the moon” following the tournament, adding:

Ms Gaskell also said the players went bowling together, ate meals together and even competed in a padel tennis tournament outside of the competition.

Current Wimbledon men's champion, Carlos Alcaraz, won the same competition in 2017.

Ms Gaskell said it was “like Christmas” when Roberta opened her tennis goodie-bag, which was one of the first-place prizes. She also won a two-day trip to Wimbledon.

She added:

Following her success in the county rounds last year, Roberta also won the opportunity to train at the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar in Mallorca for one week this summer.

She also received a 12-month sponsorship contract with Babolat Hardware and is now kitted out with rackets, strings and other equipment.

Roberta’s tennis career began when she was aged five at The Academy in Harrogate, which was taken over by David Lloyd in 2017.

The Harrogate Grammar School pupil now trains three times a week at Leeds Beckett University and is ranked 113th for her age (U14) in the UK, according to the Lawn Tennis Association.

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