"I'm starting to see it now, now that she doesn't have a boyfriend"- Chris Evert on Ajla Tomljanovic's mentality during Wimbledon 2022
Chris Evert and Ajla Tomljanovic both appear in the second season of Netflix's tennis docuseries 'Break Point'. In the show, the former World No.1 spoke about the Aussie's run at Wimbledon 2022.
The two were featured in the first episode of the new season when Evert came to see Tomljanovic during Wimbledon. The Aussie reached the fourth round of the grass-court Major by beating two seeded players. She later defeated Alize Cornet 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 to book her place in the quarterfinals.
In 'Break Point', Tomljanovic referred to Evert as a second mother.
"Chris Evert went from being Chris Evert, the legend to mentor/friend, almost like, you know, a second mom," Tomljanovic said.
Evert, in turn, called the Aussie her daughter.
"She's my daughter. I didn't have a daughter, I had three sons," the 18-time Grand Slam singles champion said.
Evert also hailed Ajla Tomljanovic's improved mentality, jokingly claiming that the Aussie had more hunger to win because she didn't have a boyfriend anymore. This was in reference to Tomljanovic's break up with Matteo Berrettini earlier in 2022.
"She's stronger now. The last couple years, all that was missing from her game was the mental part, like she wasn't hungry enough or she didn't want it enough, but I'm starting to see it now, now that she doesn't have a boyfriend. I don't know if she will like me saying that," Evert said.
It is also shown in the series that Evert made a phone call to Tomljanovic after she won her fourth-round match against Alize Cornet. She can be heard saying:
"You're in the quarters at Wimbledon."
Tomljanovic lost in the quarter-finals against the eventual champion Elena Rybanika.
Ajla Tomljanovic claimed Chris Evert texted her before Wimbledon 2022 4R clash
Ajla Tomljanovic said last year that Chris Evert supported her a lot during the 2022 season. She stated that the former World No. 1 even sent her a supportive text message before her Wimbledon match against Alize Cornet.
“Actually, over the past few months, we’ve been talking more than ever. She’s been there for me, like, this year a lot. It’s been so nice,” Tomljanovic said, adding, “We love each other, so we were there for each other in that way. She texted me before the match [against Cornet] that she believes in me.”
Ajla Tomljanovic is currently ranked 58th in the world and is yet to play a match in 2023.