Meanwhile, at Wimbledon, the Brits enjoy another flag day

The centre and No 1 courts at Wimbledon were packed yesterday for two mismatches which were foregone conclusions. In one, the crowd cheered wildly for the loser, in the other, for the winner.

They were the two faces of British tennis, both enthusiastically supported by the home fans waving the flags of the Union and St George.

Jane O'Donoghue's impossible dream against the defending champion, Venus Williams, proved to be just that. The 19-year-old lasted only 44 minutes, being buffeted by serves of 119 miles per hour, losing 6-1, 6-1, before leaving with a defiant wave to the crowd.

An hour later, Tim Henman cruised through, overwhelming the unseeded Jean-Francois Bachelot. Once again, Britain's hopes are riding on him, and "Henmania" was present in waves of red, white and blue.

Among the spectators at the women's match was Lennox Lewis, guest of Venus's sister Serena. The world heavyweight champion, fresh from his triumph over Mike Tyson, occasionally shook his head at the power and pace of Williams. O'Donoghue, who did at least break the champion's serve, was upbeat afterwards. "I felt I did do myself justice," she said. "I am playing against the best player in the world. The country's desperate for a British player to do well in the women's game. Hopefully I've shown them there is talent out there."

Henman seemed unfazed by the weight of expectation. He is said to have probably his best chance of winning the men's title, thanks to an easy draw and the absence this year of a number of favourites. There is much speculation that the Queen will be present for the final, in golden jubilee year, for the first time since the silver jubilee when Virginia Wade won the women's title. The Duchess of Kent has already said she will not be available this year to present trophies. There are rumours that Tony Blair will make an appearance if Henman reaches the Wimbledon final.

Henman, watched by his pregnant wife, Lucy, finished off his opponent with calm assurance. As well as the noise from the court, roars of support came from the 3,000-odd who had gathered outside on "Henman Hill". Asked how he felt, being the "hope of Britain", the player said he had learnt to handle it. "To have a hill named after you is pretty special."

The first day of the championships had seen the usual departure of many British players. But the mood among the crowd arriving yesterday morning was optimistic, with some insisting O'Donoghue, ranked 344th in the world, had a sporting chance against Williams.

Phil Carter, from Wigan, O'Donoghue's home town, was more phlegmatic: "We haven't had anyone famous from Wigan before, apart from George Orwell, and that wasn't his real name, and he wasn't even originally from Wigan, so we thought we would come along."