Chris Evert has given a vote of confidence to Laura Robson by insisting that the former British No 1 can still make the world ’ s top 10 when she finally gets back from injury . The American , among the all-time greats of the women ’ s game , reckons that Robson can make up for lost time despite having been out for 14 months with a wrist injury that required surgery last April . Evert offered her endorsement as current Great British No 1 Heather Watson went out of the Miami Open second round on Saturday , beaten 7-5 , 3-6 , 6-4 by world No 15 Angelique Kerber after creating enough chances to have won . Heather Watson makes her way off the court after crashing out of the Miami Open to Angelique Kerber . Watson was beaten 7-5 , 3-6 , 6-4 by world No 15 Kerber at Crandon Park Tennis Centre on Saturday . ‘ Yes it has been a very long but Laura is still young so she will be fine , ’ said Evert , speaking at the launch of her new Chrissie by Tail clothing line . ‘ If she was 27 or 28 there would be a problem but she has got plenty of time on her side , ’ said the 18-time Grand Slam winner . ‘ I was very impressed with her at Wimbledon in 2013 before the injury . I was thinking top 10 for sure and that can still be attainable . But she has got to get herself really fit for her return to the tour and that is going to be tough for Laura. ’ Current British No 1 Watson ( left ) shakes hands with Kerber at the net after their second round match . Laura Robson has been backed to reach the top 10 upon her return from a 15-month injury lay-off . There are signs that Robson may finally be ready for a return to action in time for May ’ s French Open in Paris , despite missing out on Miami and taking her name off the entry list for next month ’ s WTA Tour event in Bogota . When she does come back , however , it is likely to be at a lower-profile event . Meanwhile , her long-time friendly rival Watson resumed at 5-7 down in her rain-delayed contest with Kerber , having missed a set point the previous afternoon before a deluge arrived . The final two sets proved to be as wildly undulating as the first one had been . The 22-year-old from Guernsey , breathing down the neck of her career-high ranking of 38 , will know that this was a match she could have won against a player who has been as high as No 5 in the world but has suffered a disappointing year to date . Watson plays a shot at the 2013 US Open - she has been out injured after needing surgery on her wrist . Former US tennis star Chris Evert has backed Robson to return to her best and make it to the top 10 . With a little more composure she would have done , and an indication of how much it hinged on the more vital moments was that she ended up with more points than her more experienced opponent , with 113 to 111 . The games often came in blocks as two nervous combatants became confident and then fearful again , depending on the scoreboard . In relatively cool conditions for this event , Watson went 2-0 up in the second , then 3-2 down , before reeling off the next four games . Watson 'will be fine ' as she is very young , according to former World No 1 Evert . Kerber , a left-hander who has been to the Wimbledon semi-finals , then surged to 5-1 as Watson was broken immediately in the decider , losing one point through a volleying error of astonishing simplicity . The anxious German looked tired — ‘ she ’ s knackered , Heather ’ cried out an English voice — and Watson duly got back on serve to 4-5 before four unforced errors sealed her fate . It could have been a different end to this segment of the season , and once her doubles is over she will be concentrating on the clay courts .
Heather Watson was beaten in the Miami Open second round on Saturday . Angelique Kerber won 7-5 , 3-6 , 6-4 against Watson to end her progress . Elsewhere , Chris Evert has backed Laura Robson to reach the top 10 . Robson has been out for 14 months with a wrist injury that needed surgery .