Keothavong appointed LTA senior national coach and Fed Cup captain

The 33-year-old retired in 2013 after winning 20 ITF titles in her 14-year career, and has since become a pundit for BT Sport's WTA coverage.

She will take up her new role on December 1 and travel to the Australian Open in January, ahead of February's Fed Cup Euro/Africa Zone Group 1 matches in Tallinn, Estonia.

With Andy Murray finishing the year as the world No 1 and Johanna Konta becoming Britain's first year-end top ten player since 1983, Keothavong is keen to capitalise on the strength of elite tennis in the country.

"I'm delighted and honoured to accept this position in the sport that I love," she said. "What a privilege it's been to see all the British success on the court over the last couple of years, especially this last 12 months.

"But success doesn't just happen, it takes hard work, dedication, commitment and a desire to continually do better.

"I really look forward to working with everyone in British Tennis: the performance and coaching teams at the LTA and of course the players as we aim to raise the bar even higher.

"As a young girl growing up in Hackney, I never in my wildest dreams thought tennis would have given me the opportunities it has.

"That's why it's important to always dream big. This is a unique time in our sport, and through our athletes and the Fed Cup, we have the ability to inspire more coming along, both professionally and recreationally, into this great game of ours."

Keothavong will be working with the LTA's head coach of women's tennis, Jeremy Bates, in overseeing the development and delivery of individual support programmes for aspiring professionals.

While the Fed Cup captaincy will see her help in the team's preparation and management.

"We have found the best candidate in Anne," said Bates. "She has a tremendous work ethic having gone through triumph and adversity in her own career, and has a burning desire to give back to British Tennis.

"What she brings to the role is first-hand knowledge of the 16-20 development ages, having successfully negotiated this hurdle herself and has extensive WTA and ITF experience to draw from.

"She also has numerous Fed Cup matches under her belt, so she fully understands the pressures and challenges that come along with that.

"As a coach, Anne is a really good communicator, has a motivational delivery, sets standards and knows what it takes to achieve them and succeed."