Birmingham, UK, 20 June 2024 | Matt Trollope

Birmingham, Great Britain

Ajla Tomljanovic is once again coming alive on grass, advancing to the quarterfinals of the WTA tournament in Birmingham.

Tomljanovic lost a tight first set but rebounded to triumph 6-7(6) 6-1 6-4, setting up a quarterfinal showdown with Canadian star Leylah Fernandez.

She scored an early break in the final set to gain the ascendancy, and maintained her lead for the rest of the match, converting her fourth match point to complete victory in just over two-and-a-half hours.

It was the continuation of a successful day for Aussie players on grass, with Tomljanovic’s compatriots Jordan Thompson and Rinky Hijikata advancing to the quarterfinals at the ATP Queen’s Club tournament in London.

Tomljanovic, a two-time Wimbledon quarterfinalist, continues to make encouraging progress on the road back from long-term injury.

“I went through it all for exactly this,” Tomljanovic said during her on-court interview.

“I just really wanted to be back out here playing matches like this. And even when I was nervous and negative, I just tried to remind myself that this is what I worked for, and that I should kind of enjoy the the moments even though it’s really tense.

“So to be through now, I’m really relieved.”

Tomljanovic & Grass: A love story 🥰@AjlaTom defeats Zhu 6-7(6), 6-1, 6-4 for her first tour-level QF since the 2022 US Open!#RothesayClassic pic.twitter.com/Z8dFz9kPIO

— wta (@WTA) June 19, 2024

Last week she qualified for the 100K ITF event in Surbiton – she eventually reached the quarters – and has advanced to the same stage in Birmingham, meaning she has won six of her past seven matches on grass.

Dating back to 2021, she is an impressive 19-7 on grass.

This marks the Australian’s first tour-level quarterfinal since the 2022 US Open.

Having begun the season just inside the top 300, Tomljanovic is projected to rise to world No.170 with her latest result.

This will be her first meeting with Fernandez.

Aussies in action – Birmingham

RESULTS
Women’s singles, second round
Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) d Zhu Lin (CHN) 6-7(6) 6-1 6-4

COMING UP
Women’s singles, quarterfinals
Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) v [6] Leylah Fernandez (CAN)

Find your way to play: Visit play.tennis.com.au to get out on court and have some fun!