GREG Rusedski believes Chesham starlet Katy Dunne can go all the way, but the former British number one and US Open finalist has told her that the key moment of her career is just around the corner.

Dunne is not 15 until next month but her natural talent has already laid out a red carpet into the professional game.

Although she still does her exams through Chesham High School, she is now a full time tennis player and her inclusion in Team AEGON, comprising the cream of the crop in British tennis, means she trains at the best facilities with the best coaches.

When she is not competing in the top junior tournaments around the globe – she was a quarter-finalist at the Orange Bowl in Miami last month – she spends five days a week at the newly unveiled, state-of-the-art Halton Tennis Centre, an LTA High Performance Centre.

Ranked as the best 14-year-old in the country and the seventh best in Europe, Dunne is one of Britain’s best prospects.

She said: “Getting to Wimbledon is definitely my aim.

“I want to try and get into Junior Wimbledon this year and I want to be in the main tournament in four or five years.”

Rusedski believes she has the talent, but says the next few years will be telling.

He said: “I remember practising with her down at Roehampton a few years ago and she is doing very well.

“She’s having a break right now because she’s hurt one of her fingers so she’s doing a lot of gym work and not hitting too many forehands.

“She’ll do well in the future, but it’s a process and 14 is a difficult year.

“By the time you are 15 or 16 you know whether you are going to become a professional tennis player so the next two years are going to be key for her.”

Junior potential, though, is only a small facet of success, warns Rusedski, who is an LTA talent ambassador.

He said: “I go to the talent identification days and look at the best prospects, but you never know who is going to be the next champion.

“I always give this one example, Jamie Dalgado was a world champion at under 14 and he also won the Orange Bowl.

“And then there was a certain gentleman by the name of Tim Henman who wasn’t really a prospect and yet he ended up being the one who had a great career as a professional.

“So we’re looking at different factors, competitiveness, technical and physical ability, all sorts of things, the parents’ involvement.

“There are a lot of combinations involved in producing a champion.

“Katy needs to make sure she works very hard on the physical side of it, but it’s also mental. You have to be very strong and have a very competitive personality.

“And you have to love this game. You have to come to practise every day and want to do the hard work.

“There is no secret to it, you just have to put the hours in and use the hours smartly.”

Burn-out is an obvious consideration, but Dunne says she is under no pressure to train, rests when she wants and is just enjoying it too much to worry.

Rusedski said: “When I was her age I was playing five days a week and tournaments on the weekend.

“I just loved it. As long as you love the game and get the balance right, there is no burn-out.”

* Greg Rusedski was speaking at the unveiling of the new facilities at Halton Tennis Centre, following a £379,000 grant from Sport England through the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA). The facilities include an airhall covering three new indoor courts and a mini tennis zone and are the first of their kind in the country.