Laura Robson apologises for Vogue ‘slut’ comment

Perhaps concerned about the reception she will be afforded by the rest of the female tennis tour at Wimbledon later this month, English prodigy Laura Robson has apologised for branding many of her rivals "sluts" in a magazine article.

The 16-year-old former Wimbledon junior champion made the comments in an interview with Vogue magazine last month. She said that some of the women on the tour "go with every guy and make such a bad name for themselves".

The Women's Tennis Association has announced that it will be asking for a transcript of the interview, which Robson is thought to have given without a chaperone from her management company being present, and there may be repercussions.

In a statement, which sounded very much as though it had been composed with the help of a chaperone - and a stressed PR advisor - Robson said: "Firstly, I would just like to say a big sorry to anyone that I may have offended in an interview published recently.

"I made a totally inappropriate, throwaway comment without considering the consequences. I still have a lot to learn, both on and off the court, and clearly I need to be a lot more careful about how silly remarks may come across when taken out of context."

The grovelling appears to have worked in some quarters. The WTA said Robson has shown "maturity and good judgement" by apologising. It indicated that it wanted to draw a line under the matter by adding: "It's never easy for a 16-year-old girl to answer questions about her private life and the lives of other players."

Robson is regarded as one of the most gifted emerging talents on the female tennis circuit, but despite winning junior Wimbledon two years ago she has yet to fully establish herself on the senior tour.

She is expected to get a wildcard entry to this year's Wimbledon tournament, which will be her most high profile event since the Hopman Cup, an Australian doubles tournament, in January, where she partnered Andy Murray and made a name for herself as a bit of a joker in the press conferences.

Now she has had her fingers burnt by the media she may want to take some of her own advice. Talking about the off-court antics of some of her colleagues in the Vogue interview she commented: "You don't want to be known for stuff like that. You want to be more discreet." ·