Wimbledon women’s results, scores: Ajla Tomljanovic def Alize Cornet to reach quarter-finals
Ajla Tomljanovic has achieved something not even Wimbledon champion Ash Barty can lay claim to after surging into the quarter-finals with another impressive upset.
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After getting some tips from tennis legend Chris Evert, Ajla Tomljanovic has become the first Australian woman in over two decades to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals two years in succession.
Jelena Dokic made the Wimbledon quarter-finals in 1999 then went one further and made the semis in 2000 but no-one has done it since.
Not even Ash Barty, who won the women’s titles at Wimbledon last year, has managed it but Tomljanovic has after beating Alize Cornet of France 4-6 6-4 6-3, surprising herself as much as anyone else.
“Until it really happens, it never really sinks in. That’s how I approach it,” Tomljanovic said.
“The match didn’t feel like it was in my control. It felt like a coin toss a little bit.
“She wasn’t giving me much. That’s why in the end I was a little bit in disbelief that I actually came through.”
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Tomljanovic lost to Barty in last year’s quarter-finals and has now replaced the retired champion as Australia’s top ranked female player.
Her next opponent this time is Elena Rybakina, from Kazakhstan.
She’s seeded 17th and although Tomljanovic has never beaten her she feels she has a better chance of making the semis than when she faced Barty.
“Last year was such a shocking thing for me, the way everything happened, it was so quick,” she said.
“I played someone that was playing unbelievable tennis. For her, being on Centre Court was like being in her backyard. For me, it was a huge occasion.
“Now I think I’m in a different spot, for sure. Obviously Elena is a great player. Whoever’s in the quarters is doing great. I think it’s definitely a little bit of a different matchup for me.”
Based in Florida, Tomljanovic has recently struck a friendship with Evert, one of the all-time greats who won 18 grand slam singles titles.
Evert has been passing on advice to Tomljanovic and was one of the first to congratulate her after she fought back to beat Cornet.
“We’ve been in contact a lot. Actually over the past few months we’ve been talking more than ever,” Tomljanovic said.
“She texted me before the match that she believes in me and that I need to believe that I belong here.
“She called me right away after. It’s surreal. Chris Evert is calling me after I made the quarters. To me, she’s just Chrissie. I’m very blessed to have her in my corner, that’s for sure.”
Tomljanovic’s father Ratko was also busy straight after the match, re-booking his daughter’s accommodation after she remained in the tournament.
With housing hard to find in Wimbledon during the championship, she has already had to move once because her father insists on booking for only one match at a time.
“Luckily this hotel has free rooms, so he was on his iPad again,” she said.
“I think it’s reverse psychology for him. I don’t know.
“At this point I told him, ‘listen, I’m not moving from this hotel until I’m out of the tournament. Whatever you got to do, you do it.
“Even if I have to share the room with a stranger, I’m not leaving. Yeah, I told him that.”
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Originally published as Wimbledon women’s results, scores: Ajla Tomljanovic def Alize Cornet to reach quarter-finals