Scotland’s Elena Baltacha fell at the final hurdle for the second consecutive year at US Open qualifying in New York.

The 26-year old was seeded second for the qualifying draw but came unstuck against Australia’s Anastasia Rodionova, eventually slipping to a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 defeat.

The British number two was below her best but after taking a tight first set, it looked like she might scrape through.

But Baltacha’s serve disintegrated in front of her eyes and the Scot found it tough going to compete in the final two sets.

It was a disappointing end to the week for Baltacha who had looked imperious in her first two matches at Flushing Meadows, dropping just seven games in straight sets wins over Argentina’s Betina Jozami and Czech Republic’s Andrea Hlavackova.

And with 15-year old Laura Robson also losing her final qualifying match, it will be the first Grand Slam of the year without a British representative in the women’s senior draw.