Wimbledon 2017: Aljaz Bedene knocked out of the third round after losing in straight sets to Gilles Muller

The 27-year-old was beaten 7-6 (7/4), 7-5, 6-4

Bedene was playing in the third round of Wimbledon for the first in his career (Getty)

Britain’s hopes of seeing four home players in the last 16 of Wimbledon for the first time since 1975 were dashed on Friday afternoon after Aljaz Bedene succumbed to defeat against 16th seed Gilles Muller, losing 7-6 (7/4), 7-5, 6-4.

A total of four British players - Bedene, Andy Murray, Johanna Konta and Heather Watson - had booked their place in the third round of the Championships earlier this week, taking the country back to the heady heights of 1997.

But for Bedene, who had never before reached the third round of Wimbledon, his history-making heroics were brought to an end here on No 2. Court.

Despite his straight-sets defeat, the Slovenian-born Briton put in a defiant and spirited performance that saw the match run for 2hrs and 27mins.

Indeed, such resilience was clear to see from the off. After being broken early on in the first set, Bedene hit back in the following game to return the favour.

The set eventually went to a tiebreak but it was Muller who emerged on top, sending home a thumping forehand winner to seal the deal.

Bedene started the second set brightly, pulling to 2-0 after taking the first two games, but his opponent’s experience and pedigree shone through.

Two breaks, coming at either end of the set, put Muller in control as he stamped his authority on the match.

Despite the occasional flash of brilliance from Bedene, with a notable lobbed winner drawing applause from the crowd midway through the match, it wasn’t enough to stop the Luxembourger who saw out the final set in style to book his place in the fourth round of the Championships for the first time in his career.

Bedene admitted afterwards that he needed to improve his consistency as a player, having conceded 29 unforced errors throughout the match.

"Every time I give my best till the end," he said. "Unfortunately it didn't work out today. I wasn't playing my best tennis.

"But obviously I have to be more consistent. I'll work every day hard just to improve my game. I mean, my coach knows what's there to improve. I'm just going to listen.

"Although I was fighting, there was a bit of doubt in it, you know, maybe it's not the day today to win.

"But, you know, he's a great grass court player. It's not easy to play against him. I didn't find my style today. So I need to learn from that to get my style on the court against anyone."