Gold Coast, Australia, 23 August 2024 | Leigh Rogers

Kimberly Birrell has never shied away from hard work.

The resilient competitor has fought back from several career-threatening injuries and was rewarded with a top-100 breakthrough last season.

The 26-year-old from Gold Coast achieved a new career-first this week at the US Open, qualifying at a major tournament for the first time.

> READ: Birrell among a record six Australians to qualify at US Open 2024

In our Train with the Pros series, Birrell shares an insight into her practice routines and offers valuable advice for aspiring players.

Do you have a favourite time to practice?

Well, I’m notoriously not a morning person (laughs). So ideally I’d get to sleep in, then get going around 10am. If I can sleep past 7am then I’m really happy and once I get my coffee, I feel like I’m a much better person. A perfect day for me would be to practice around 10am, then again just after lunch. I think a lot of people don’t realise that it is a whole day thing when we’re practising, it’s not just a couple of hours. It’s kind of like working a 9-to-5 normal job.

Do you have a favourite part of your game to work on?

I think that it’s good to practice your weaknesses that you need to work on, but also practice your strengths a lot too. I like to do a bit of everything, but most of all, working on my attacking game and coming forward. I’ve really been trying to work on my volleys in the past year, as well as a lot of serving and returning well on the first ball.

Do you have a least favourite part of your game to work on?

I hate doing Wattbike sessions. I think that’s because when I was injured, I had to do a lot of bike sessions because I couldn’t run for a period of time. I had to do bike sessions every day and by the end of it, I was dreading them. I way prefer to go for a run, rather than sitting on a stationary bike with my own thoughts.

Can you recall your first opportunity to hit with a professional player?

It would have been with Sam Stosur, because she is from the Gold Coast as well and she grew up playing at my parent’s club in Southport. I remember if she ever spent Christmas at home, she would come into Queens Park and would always get me out on court with her for the last five minutes of her sessions. She was always so generous with her time to hit with me.
I was also so lucky to get to train with Ash Barty up in Brisbane and see her every day and get exposed to her level at a young age.

Can you recall any training sessions that have been particularly memorable?

I guess just any time that I get to be out there with my friends. Even though we don’t talk that much when we’re practising, we can still have a laugh during the drinks break. It’s really cool that we’re all working towards the same goals and can push each other really hard. It’s important to still have fun, even when you’re pushing yourself to the limit.

Are there any players on tour you’d most like to practice with?

Probably Iga Swiatek. She’s been at the top of our sport for the last couple of years and is really intense when she plays, which I think she’d bring to the practice court too. Any chance I get to hit with any of the top-10 girls, I really try to savour the experience to feel their balls and see how much concentration they put into every single shot.

Is there anyone from tennis history you’d most like the opportunity to hit with?

There’s so many! I think it would be awesome to share the court with Billie Jean King. She always drops pearls of wisdom, which I’m sure she’d do during the change of ends. It would have also been really cool to hit with Serena Williams at her prime. Kim Clijsters is another one too.

What advice would you share with an aspiring player looking to maximise their training sessions?

The session starts from the first ball, so make sure you do a really good physical warm-up to activate your major muscles and look after your joints. That’s really important, especially as you get older. Getting up a bit of a sweat before you step on court also makes sure you feel ready to go from the first ball. You shouldn’t be trying to ease into it.

Finally, if you had five minutes remaining in a practice session and could do anything you wish, what would you choose?

Lately I’ve been trying to practice shots I haven’t done too much of in my career, like drop shots and a sliced backhand. But it’s always nice to finish a session on something that makes you feel really good, so for me that is drive volleys or backhands down the line. I like to finish sessions on a high.

> READ MORE: From our “Train with the pros” series

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