Former British Number One Tennis Star Elena Baltacha has Died after Battle with Cancer

Former British tennis number one Elena Baltacha has died of liver cancer at the age of 30.

Baltacha was diagnosed with the illness in January, just two months after retiring from tennis and only weeks after she married her coach Nino Severino.

In a statement released by her family, Severino said: "We are heartbroken beyond words at the loss of our beautiful, talented and determined Bally.

"She was an amazing person and she touched so many people with her inspirational spirit, her warmth and her kindness."

Born in Ukraine and raised in Scotland, at the age of 19, Baltacha was diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis, a chronic liver condition which compromises the immune system.

Despite her illness, she went on to reach the Australian Open third round in 2005 and 2010 and reached a career-high world ranking of 49.

She won 11 singles titles, made the third round of Wimbledon in 2002 and was part of Great Britain's Fed Cup team for 11 years.

Announcing her retirement last November, she revealed she planned to dedicate herself to coaching and developing the academy she founded in 2012 with Severino.