“He repeated, like, three times,‘ Ajla, you’re back in the quarterfinals, ’” Tomljanovic said.
“I think she repeated it, like, because I wasn’t saying much, I just laughed at her. She just said how happy she is for me. I said something like ‘you can believe I’m here later, I don’t know , a couple of months ago, from the conversations we had. “
Chris Evert, the 18-time Grand Slam champion, has become a trusted mentor to Ajla Tomljanovic. Credit: Wayne Ludbey
“She said, ‘No, I actually think you’re here because you always work hard.’
This additional step seems to have been taken. Former Australian tennis star and current commentator Wally Masur has seen Tomljanovic mature from the moment she was invited to the Tennis Australia program, with many more resources than Croatia could offer, for TA boss Craig Tiley.
This came after a secret coup between David Taylor, who had coached Sam Stosur, and Tomljanovic, then ranked 78th in the world, marked the decision to move to Australia, where Masur said he was already much loved by the players. premises.
Masur, who made the fourth round at Wimbledon three times, said Tomljanovic continued to build.
Tomljanovic celebrates victory until the quarterfinals. Credit: AP
“She’s interesting because she’s a good player, but she’s given some clues that there’s a bit of doubt about herself, which apparently shouldn’t be there, because she really has play,” Masur said.
“He is very fit, he works hard, taking care of many elements of the game. Hopefully, this self-confidence is increasing because the women’s draw is pretty open. She has a difficult task, there is no doubt, but as the women’s draw unfolds, anyone has an opportunity that can seize the moment. “
And the Evert connection cannot be underestimated.
“Not bad, right? He’s someone who knows how to navigate a Grand Slam tournament,” Masur said.
“I guess that’s talking about Ajla’s base there in Florida. Obviously, this is where Chris spends his time. That’s really positive.”
Tomljanovic was the number 1 Croatian when he made the call to join Tennis Australia. She was called a traitor by some in her homeland, so overcoming adversity has been a strength. On the court, however, it has been a conservative style of play that has sometimes slowed him down. But the world number 44 believes he has opened the lap.
“I had to learn, when it was happening, I had to learn to take more risks and not look at it as a risk, because I have big goals, I’m a big girl, so I’m not going to run. baseline, ”he said.
“I think I have a powerful game, but I have the ability to play again maybe a little more conservatively, which can benefit me and hurt me sometimes.”
Loading
As Masur says, the challenges keep coming. Rybakina reached the quarter-finals of the French Open last year, when he reached the fourth round at Wimbledon in his first appearance at the All England Club.
“I feel like Ajla is at her best when she’s winning the arm wrestling and can get ahead. She has that great ability to crush a backhand on the line and in the same way with the right, and that is very difficult to defend, “Masur said.
“Rybakina is six feet tall, he’s big and strong, and he just crushes him … you have to defend when you have to, and hopefully you can control your share of points.”
News, results and analysis of sports weekend experts sent every Monday. Subscribe to our Sports newsletter.
Watch all the Wimbledon action without ads, live and on demand at Stan Sport, with 4K UHD streaming matches starting June 27th. The coverage of selected matches starts at 9 GEM from 19:30 (AEST) every night.