Our tennis girls are being laughed out of court

British tennis has made a resurgence in the men's game over the past 10 years, with the likes of Tim Henman, Greg Rusedski and, more recently, Andy Murray all making strides in the top 10 rankings. Before then it was up to the likes of Mark Petchey, Chris Wilkinson and Jeremy Bates to try to squeeze into the top 100 world rankings in the late ’80s early ’90s.

In the women's game, success has been lagging behind its male counterparts and it doesn't seem to be getting any better for the girls who are coming on to the WTA tour. Not since Virginia Wade has Britain produced a world-class ladies tennis champion and it is now more than 30 years since she lifted the Wimbledon title.

True enough, neither Rusedski nor Henman where Grand Slam champions but at least they were capable of competing for the titles and won numerous 'big' tournaments throughout their careers. Henman was semi-finalist at Wimbledon and the French Open on a number of occasions, while Rusedski was runner-up at the US Open.

Britain's women are lucky if they win one round at Wimbledon and only gain entry into the tournament because of the 'wild card' system. They truly have no hope of achieving success. Although there has been a slight improvement amongst the ladies this season, we as a nation still have no top 100 players and only five in the top 200.

We have heard from coaches that Anne Keothavong and Elena Baltacha have potential, but both girls are now nearing their mid-20s and any chance of even reaching the top 100 seems far off, never mind actually winning a tournament. Mel South is probably Britain's best youngster but, at 22, she should have produced and developed more than she has. Still, with a career high of 155 in this week's rankings, South could move close to the top 100 with a good grass court season, though this still is hardly a success.

So why can't Britain produce a top female tennis player?

Many people think the British girls are spoilt and not pushed enough. They get everything paid for and most come from upper-class backgrounds where they have needed for nothing. The motivation is not there and they simply do not push themselves enough to perform. They have no one in the British ranks to aspire to and often being British No.1 is good enough for them, even though it only means reaching number 120 in the world.

The players blame injuries and lack of confidence for their poor displays but – to put it simply – they are not good enough. The LTA needs to go out to schools and find players rather than waiting for them to come knocking. There are probably numerous hidden across the country but there is not enough tennis played in these schools to find these youngsters.

Until the LTA takes a more pro-active approach to finding talent then Britain is not likely to get a ladies champion in the near future. Even the juniors are failing to impress. You see 15 and 16-year-olds on the WTA tour beating players much older than themselves but the British girls disappoint time and time again.

Anna Fitzpatrick, a top youngster who did so well at junior Wimbledon last year, cannot string any wins together on the low level ITF tennis tour.

Something has to be done and done soon to stop the rot. Let's find some talent in this country and put British women's tennis back on the map!