Former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin took another step on the comeback trail by winning her final qualifying match in Roehampton to book her place in the Wimbledon main draw.

As a former world No.4 and the 2020 Australian Open champion, Kenin’s was one of the most recognisable names in Qualifying this week and she made it three wins in three days by outplaying fellow American Taylor Townsend 6-3, 6-3.

Kenin dominated the middle phase of the match and the only real difficulty came in closing out the contest, eventually wrapping it up on her sixth match point.

“I’m super happy,” said Kenin, who beat the likes of Coco Gauff, Ons Jabeur, Ashleigh Barty and Garbiñe Muguruza to win her 2020 Melbourne major.

“There were a few dramatics towards the end so I just tried to get through it somehow and I can celebrate now.”

After a standout season in 2020 when she added a Roland-Garros runner-up finish to that maiden Grand Slam title in Australia, the 24-year-old has been forced to endure two difficult years and a dramatic drop down the rankings.

In 2021 she underwent an emergency appendectomy early in the season, then suffered a foot injury and in late summer contracted COVID, which meant she didn’t play another match that year after Wimbledon.

She then missed five months in 2022 with what was reported to be a right ankle injury, returning to Washington in August ranked No.416 in the world.

Kenin has shown glimpses of her best tennis during the first half of this year - she beat world No.2 Aryna Sabalenka on clay in Rome - and the world No.126 was too solid for her compatriot Townsend on Stadium Court.

Once Kenin had got to grips with her opponent’s variety and lefty grass court game, from midway through the first set it was relatively one-sided.

The Florida-based right-hander used her compact baseline game to break for 4-3 in the first set, quickly wrapped up the opener, and another break early in the second effectively ended the contest.

“The first goal was to qualify,” she said. “I’m loving the grass - I didn’t used to really like it so I’m really happy I battled through qualies and I have three matches under my belt. That gives me a boost of confidence. I’m looking forward to the main draw.”

By entering the ladies’ singles as an unseeded former Grand Slam champion, Kenin fully justifies the ‘dangerous floater’ tag.

There won’t be many players who will want to see the American’s name alongside theirs when the draw is made on Friday.

Follow the draw live on wimbledon.com from 10am BST.