“We love each other; she’s been there for me this year a lot” - Ajla Tomljanovic on Chris Evert
Wimbledon quarterfinalist Ajla Tomljanovic and 18-time Grand Slam champion Chris Evert share a special bond, with the Croatian-Australian considering Evert her mentor and a friend.
Tomljanovic fought back from a set down to defeat Alize Cornet on Monday and book her place in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships. By doing so, she became the first Australian woman to enter successive quarterfinals at SW19 since Jelena Dokic reached the quarterfinals in 1999 and the semifinals in 2000.
In a chat with The Sydney Morning Herald, Tomljanovic spoke about the relationship and bond she has with Evert.
“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.”
@Ajlatom, who comes from a set down to defeat Cornet 4-6, 6-4, 6-3!
FIRED 🆙🔥
Back-to-back #Wimbledon quarterfinals for 🇦🇺 @Ajlatom, who comes from a set down to defeat Cornet 4-6, 6-4, 6-3! https://t.co/ldyvBx3Lyo
Evert has battled ovarian cancer this year, but her determination to help Tomljanovic has not waned.
“I kind of felt at one point bad. She was going through something, if you want to talk about problems in life, that’s something that’s scary. I remember one time telling her: ‘oh, my gosh, I don’t want to bother you with my problems because you’re doing something way harder’. She’s like: ‘no, no, I love, in a way, the distraction’,” Tomljanovic said.
While the 29-year-old has dealt with self-doubt throughout her career, Evert made sure that it sunk into Tomljanovic that she’s through to the last eight at Wimbledon.
“She repeated, like, three times: ‘Ajla, you’re in the quarter-finals again’. I think she repeated it, like, because I wasn’t saying much, I was just kind of laughing at her. She just kept saying how happy she is for me. I said something like ‘can you believe I’m here after, I don’t know, a couple months ago, the conversations we were having,’” Tomljanovic said.
“She said, ‘no, I actually do believe that you’re here because you always work hard’. Like one of the hardest workers that she’s seen, but there was always something missing for that extra step,” she added.
“She fights till the end, that's why in the end I was a little bit in disbelief that I actually came through” - Ajla Tomljanovic on her win over Alize Cornet
Ajla Tomljanovic made a breakthrough run to her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at Wimbledon last year. She backed it up this year with a return to the last eight.
Speaking after her fourth-round win, the Croatian-Australian said that she was in disbelief over the victory.
“Today was crazy. [Cornet's] level was really high from the get-go. I think the second point of the first game was so long that I kind of thought to myself, 'Oh, my God, I don't know if I'm going to physically be able to keep up with her.' But I found a way,” Ajla Tomljanovic said.
“It felt like a coin toss a little bit. I mean, she fights till the end. She wasn't giving me much. That's why in the end I was a little bit in disbelief that I actually came through,” she added.
"She would walk the dog for hours and just check the score"
@Ajlatom's mum couldn't watch her matches last year, but she's here in person now ❤️
#Wimbledon https://t.co/Ppw6NBM4Up
Ajla Tomljanovic was ousted in the quarterfinals last year by her now-retired compatriot Ashleigh Barty, who was then the Australian and World No. 1. Barty eventually won the 2021 Wimbledon title against Karolina Pliskova in the final.
This year, she will take on 17th-seed Kazakh Elena Rybakina for a place in the semifinals.