Comeback stars Ajla Tomljanovic and Daria Saville have roared into the US Open second spherical to arrange a pair of show-court show-stoppers in New York.
Playing her first match of the 12 months after present process knee surgical procedure in January, Tomljanovic shook off some rust in an emotion-charged 3-6 6-2 6-4 win over dogged Hungarian baseliner Panna Udvardy.
Tomljanovic appeared in a state of disbelief after clinching victory, shaking her head and repeatedly asking her courtside entourage “how, how, how?”
“In a way I feel like I have no business being in the second round. This was just a huge test for me,” she mentioned.
“I know it might sound weird but I played the best I could – or more. I did more than I thought I could and barely got over the line. That tells you something.
“I tapped into my competitiveness, that felt like it was all heart, but I wish it felt better physically than it did.”
The win earned the 2022 quarter-finalist an thrilling rematch with fourth-seeded Australian Open runner-up Elena Rybakina on Thursday (AEST).
Rybakina denied Tomljanovic in a pulsating three-set Wimbledon quarter-final final 12 months earlier than occurring to assert her maiden grand slam trophy on the All England Club.
The Kazakh has kicked on in 2023 to emerge as one of many dominant forces in ladies’s tennis.
For Tomljanovic, it’s been a season of despair till Monday.
On the cusp of being seeded for the primary time at a grand slam, the 29-year-old was compelled to withdraw from her residence main on the eve of the event.
She additionally sat out the French Open and Wimbledon and watched her rating tumble to No.127 on the planet.
“I’m on a high emotionally but I am very realistic about where my knee and body is at,” Tomljanovic mentioned.
“I am very realistic that I still need time, but I would be stupid to be complaining being here in the second round. It just felt like that reward after so many months of just torture.”
Saville can also be within the infancy of her return from a torn ACL however made a flying begin to her Open marketing campaign to arrange a second-round conflict with world No.1 and defending champion Iga Swiatek.
Saville appeared something however a participant on the comeback path from a severe knee harm as she routed American teenager Clervie Ngounoue 6-0 6-2 in little greater than an hour.
“I was very composed,” Saville mentioned after notching her first win at Flushing Meadows in 5 years.
Rinky Hijikata additionally progressed in vastly totally different trend on a promising opening day for the Australian contingent.
Hijikata vindicated his wildcard entry with a 7-5 5-7 6-3 7-5 victory over Russian Pavel Kotov in a sapping contest stretching a minute shy of 4 hours.
The hard-earned victory was the 22-year-old’s first at a grand slam outdoors of Australia.
While Tomljanovic, Saville and Hijikata rolled on, fellow Australians Alexei Popyrin, Kim Birrell, Olivia Gadecki and wildcard Storm Hunter all bowed out within the first spherical.
Birrell, a qualifying fortunate loser, battled exhausting in a 6-3 7-6 (7-4) loss to 2021 Australian Open finalist Jennifer Brady, whereas Hunter succumbed 6-4 6-0 to Czech tenth seed Karolina Muchova, the 2023 French Open runner-up.
Gadecki let a set-and-a-break lead slip in a dispiriting 1-6 6-3 6-4 loss to 16-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva and Popyrin crashed to a 6-3 6-4 3-6 6-3 defeat to Swiss qualifier Dominic Stricker.
World No.13 Alex de Minaur, together with Max Purcell, Chris O’Connell, Aleksandar Vukic, Jordan Thompson, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Jason Kubler and qualifying fortunate loser James Duckworth all play first-round matches on day two.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
