Australian tennis star Ajla Tomljanovic says she’s overcome the self-doubt that crept in throughout an injury-ravaged 2023 marketing campaign and is hungrier than ever for Grand Slam success as she prepares to start her Australian Open preparations at subsequent week’s United Cup.
Tomljanovic rose to a career-high 32 within the rankings after she reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon and the US Open final 12 months, however a knee cartilage damage plagued her all season and compelled her out of the United Cup and Australian Open and noticed her tumble down the rankings.
The damage wore her down however she made a promising return on the US Open after which performed a few of the finest tennis of her profession to win a maiden title in Brazil final month that has her quietly assured heading into the Australian summer season.
“I think I struggle to put things in perspective and not expect a lot from myself, but I do have to remind myself constantly how far I’ve come this year because there were times when I really doubted a lot of things,” she mentioned.
“The fact that I’m back to feeling pretty good – and there’s still a lot to work on especially my movement – but at the same time I feel like I can play a high level with what I’ve got, and that gets me excited.
“Hopefully that perspective can help me turn around that juju from my Aussie summer from the past few years.”
The damage got here on the worst attainable time for the 30-year-old who had proven she was able to matching it with the largest names on the planet.
“(I questioned) if I’ll ever be able to come back physically and be able to do what I expect from myself with what’s required to play at a high level,” she revealed.
“The rehab was tough because for a while there was pain, and I don’t have experience with that.
“That was a big unknown so I had to put a lot of trust in the people that I chose to surround myself with.
“I’m grateful to those people because without them it would have been a lot more challenging.”
Tomljanovic says her knee issues have been very totally different to a shoulder damage earlier in her profession when she “felt invincible” understanding that she nonetheless had loads of years in entrance of her.
She concedes her knee won’t ever be the identical because it as soon as was, however is assured she has nothing to fret about approaching a busy marketing campaign beginning in Perth subsequent week.
“It’s different. It’s never going to be the same after an injury, but there’s no pain,” she mentioned.
“It’s just a different approach to my body so I have to manage my load.
“All I need to know is that when I’m on the match court, I can push as hard as I want, and that’s what I can do.”
Tomljanovic will group up with Alex de Minaur to guide the Australian cost in Perth in a brutal group that features defending champs America, in addition to Great Britain.
The Aussies aren’t anticipated to achieve the finals in Sydney, however Tomljanovic says the hosts have all the time carried out effectively when written off, with the boys making the Davis Cup remaining final month, whereas the ladies reached the Billie Jean King Cup remaining in 2022.
“We thrive (on being the underdog),” she mentioned.
“If you look at the Billie Jean King Cup and the Davis Cup, rankings don’t matter as much.
“I think we like that (being underrated).
“I think it’s the team camaraderie (that works so well for us) because you can’t fake that.
“It’s either genuine or not, and I think the culture in Australian tennis is really strong and we all have the same goal – we want to win – but at the same time we also feel like a team.”
Source: www.news.com.au
