Heather Watson loses to defending champion Elise Mertens in Hobart International semi-final

Watson lost 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 and now heads to Melbourne for the Australian Open first round

Heather Watson hasn't reached a WTA final in almost two years (Getty)

Heather Watson’s encouraging run at the Hobart International has ended with a semi-final loss to Elise Mertens, the World No 36 and defending champion.

Watson, who won the title in 2015, fought back well after losing the first set but was then blown away in the third, with Mertens winning five of the last six games to book her spot in the final.

“(It is) just frustrating,” Watson commented after her defeat. “I thought I made too many unforced errors. Because I had been playing so well here I expected more of myself.”

A single break of serve was enough for Belgium’s Mertens to take a nip and tuck opening set, with Watson unable to break despite taking her opponent to deuce eight times.

But the British number two broke early in the second to open up a 3-1 lead and began her best spell of the match: winning five successive games to take the set and seize the momentum.

She even had an opportunity to break at the start of the third and final set, only for Mertens to defend break point before taking control, holding her nerve to win 6-4, 1-6, 6-2.

“She made the same run [from qualifying] as I did last year, but I’m happy to win today,” Mertens said in her on-court interview.

“I tried to play a bit more aggressive in the third set and make her run a little bit more. She was dictating me in the second set, all credits to her. She played an amazing match.”

Watson will now head to Melbourne to prepare for her Australian Open first round match against Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva.