Ajla Tomljanovic’s Struggles and Hopes for Wimbledon
Ajla Tomljanovic is eager to move on from the challenges she faced at Roland-Garros, where she was eliminated in the first round. The 33-year-old Australian managed to win the first set against American Caty McNally before ultimately falling with a score of 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3.
Tomljanovic, who once ranked as world No.32, has seen her position drop to 100th in the rankings. She has also been dealing with painful plantar fasciitis in her feet in recent weeks. Despite these difficulties, she remains focused on the upcoming Wimbledon tournament.
“I’m just looking forward to putting this horrific six weeks behind me,” Tomljanovic said in an interview. “I think it’s probably the worst stretch I’ve had in my career, which feels odd. I don’t think I’ve ever really lost this many matches in a row, so that honestly feels a bit new at this stage of my career.”
Tomljanovic will begin her preparations for Wimbledon by participating in a tournament in Birmingham next year. This marks a significant step in her recovery and return to competitive tennis.
James Duckworth’s Successful Start
The news was more positive for another Australian player, James Duckworth, who advanced to the second round at the French Open. He secured a 6-3, 4-1 walkover victory against Canada’s Gabriel Diallo, who was suffering from lower back issues and had recently cut his finger on a glass bottle.
Duckworth is expected to face 27th seed Rafael Jodar in the next round. Jodar, a 19-year-old Spanish player, has been making waves in the tennis world and is often compared to legendary compatriot Rafael Nadal.
Jodar is scheduled to start his campaign against Aleksandar Kovacevic of the United States on Monday night (AEST). Duckworth expressed excitement about the upcoming match.
“It’ll be an interesting match, obviously, Jodar has been playing well these last few months,” Duckworth said. “His ranking’s shot up pretty quick but Kovacevic’s been playing some good tennis, especially last week, and when he’s on he’s a very good player. Hopefully they can play for 10 hours tomorrow and hopefully they’ll be a little bit tired.”
Alex de Minaur’s Strong Performance
Australia’s leading hope, eighth seed Alex de Minaur, is set to open his campaign against England’s Toby Samuel on Monday night (AEST). De Minaur has been preparing for this moment after a strong performance in qualifying, where he defeated David Goffin.
“I’ve been able to watch a little bit of that,” de Minaur said. “He hasn’t been on tour for much, he’s just come out of college. He’s playing with a lot of confidence, I’m sure he’s going to throw the kitchen sink and I’m excited for a battle. It should be a lot of fun and hopefully I can make it physical.”
De Minaur has been working to overcome a recent slump in form. He snapped a run of poor results by reaching the semi-finals in Hamburg last week.
“Had been a bleak month, to say the least,” the 27-year-old admitted. “Honestly, the only thing I was looking for was to try to get the monkey off my back, just try to get one win. When the draw came out (for Hamburg), it was a pretty brutal draw, but I ended up playing four top-20 players, and played four really good matches. Exactly what I was looking for, got my mojo back, and now feeling great, ready to go here.”
De Minaur’s best finish at Roland-Garros was the 2024 quarter-finals. His performance in Hamburg has given him renewed confidence as he prepares for the challenges ahead.
