Emma Raducanu doubted whether she would recover from injury in time for Wimbledon, but says she is now "ready to go" after a week's training.
The 19-year-old has endured an injury-plagued season, with her first match of the grass-court campaign lasting just 36 minutes against Viktorija Golubic at the Nottingham Open.
Raducanu was forced to withdraw from the contest earlier this month due to a side strain and subsequently missed the Eastbourne International.
She previously stated she had "no idea" if she would be fit in time for Wimbledon, which begins for the reigning US Open champion with a first-round clash with Alison Van Uytvanck.
But after missing Friday's practice session with Garbine Muguruza, Raducanu took to the court on Saturday and later declared herself ready for the third grand slam of the year.
"I think that this week was a good build-up," she said at a news conference. "There were moments earlier on in the week we weren't really sure.
"We were sort of going to see how the week goes. But it went pretty well. Now it's full steam ahead. Right now I'm fit. I'm ready to go. I'm looking forward to it. That's it.
"I've been managing it since Nottingham. I took two weeks off. Yesterday we just had to react to the situation.
"I already practiced in the morning, so we all collectively thought it was the best decision to pass on the afternoon session as well and stay fresh and ready to go."
Raducanu made history in 2021 when becoming the first qualifier to win a grand slam with victory over Leylah Fernandez in the US Open final.
That success came two months after retiring from her fourth-round match with Ajla Tomljanovic at last year's Wimbledon with breathing difficulties.
The Briton enters this year's event as one of the biggest names, though, and she will make her Centre Court debut in Monday's showdown with Belgium's Van Uytvanck.
"I think it’s amazing," Raducanu said reflecting on the past 12 months. "This year I get such a special feeling walking around the grounds.
"I definitely feel that people are behind me. Even from some of the people working on the tournament, they're like, 'you got this'. Just cheering me on. That's pretty special in itself.
"I feel like last year I came straight out of my exams, I was fresh, ready to play. I feel the same excitement this year because I think Wimbledon just brings that out of me.
"But I'm definitely looking forward to it. Just going to play like a kid who just loves playing tennis.
"It's always my dream to step out on Centre Court. It's something I've always wanted to do and started playing tennis for."
Raducanu won her only previous match with Van Uytvanck last year, prior to her big breakthrough at Flushing Meadows, and is 35 places above the Belgian in the WTA rankings.
"I definitely feel game-wise I back myself pretty much against anyone," Raducanu added. "I feel if I really put my mind to it and commit, then I can be pretty good.
"So I'm definitely looking forward to the match. But she's a real tricky opponent, especially on grass courts.
"I think this surface definitely suits her well. She plays a pretty quick, high-tempo game. It's definitely going to take some getting used to, being prepared for that straightaway."
Madrid champion Swiatek keen to maintain level at Italian Open
Iga Swiatek will not rest on her laurels after overcoming Aryna Sabalenka in last week's Madrid Open final, pledging to learn from that gruelling battle ahead of the Italian Open.
Swiatek toppled Sabalenka in an enthralling battle between the world's top two players on Saturday, saving three championship points en route to a 7-5 4-6 7-6 (9-7) win in over three hours on court.
The world number one has now won every European clay court tournament at WTA 500 level or higher, including back-to-back triumphs in Rome in 2021 and 2022.
As she prepares to open her Italian Open campaign against either Caroline Dolehide or a qualifier on Friday, Swiatek is determined to ensure she does not let her level drop.
Speaking during an appearance on the WTA Insider Podcast, Swiatek said: "I feel like after such a match, I deserve a two-month vacation, but I can't have that so I'll trade it for six tiramisus or something!
"I can let it go and rest and just forget about it, or I can really take a big lesson from it, so it depends on what is going to happen in the next few weeks in terms of how I analyse it."
Swiatek's latest win – her seventh in 10 meetings with Sabalenka – saw her put further distance between herself and the world number two in the WTA rankings.
However, the four-time grand slam champion knows she cannot afford to let up, given the fierce competition on the WTA tour.
"I'm not thinking about Aryna when I'm practising, but it's more that I know that the competition is big and if I stop for a while I might be pushed out," Swiatek said.
"But I had this kind of thing in Rome 2022, with the final against Ons [Jabeur]. Physically, I was so tired. The rallies were long, Ons was playing a pretty tricky game.
"So after that game for the next few years, when I was doing the worst practices on court and I was dying, I was thinking about that game."
Sinner will only play Roland Garros if '100 per cent' fit
Jannik Sinner says that he is aiming to make a return for Roland-Garros if he is "100 per cent" fit following a hip issue.
The world number two withdrew from the Madrid Open last week ahead of his quarter-final tie with Felix Auger-Aliassime due to the injury.
Sinner confirmed on Saturday that he will not be playing in what would be a home tournament in Rome.
Providing an update on his progress on Sunday, Sinner said: "I went back to Monte-Carlo, we did some more tests, which made me take this hard decision because I have to skip the most special tournament of the year for me.
"I have to accept it even if it hurts me and many fans. We realised something is not totally good. If it is not 100 per cent healed, I'll stay out a little longer. Caring for the body is much more important than everything else.
"I’ll just try to get back to 100 per cent as soon as possible, hopefully trying to play in Paris and then Wimbledon and all the rest.
"We'll take our time, there's no rush and, hopefully, I can get back very, very soon."
Nadal and Djokovic on opposite sides of Italian Open draw
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic could meet in the Italian Open final after being positioned on opposite sides of the draw.
Nadal, a record 10-time champion at the tournament, could meet reigning champion Daniil Medvedev in the quarter-finals should they both get that far, while newly crowned Madrid Open winner, Andrey Rublev, would be a potential semi-final opponent.
In the top half of the draw, Djokovic will take on either Roman Safiullin or a qualifier in his first competitive appearance since Monte Carlo.
The Serbian, who is just two wins away from his 1100th tour-level career victory, is seeded to face Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals. Alexander Zverev and Grigor Dimitrov are also on their side of the draw.
Meanwhile, top seed Iga Swiatek has been drawn in the opposite half of the draw to Elena Rybakina, the reigning Italian Open champion.
Swiatek is projected to face Coco Gauff in the semi-finals for the second consecutive WTA 1000 event should they both progress.
Rybakina is due to meet second seed Aryna Sabalenka at the same stage, having lost to the Belarusian at last week’s Madrid Open semi-finals.
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