Ajla Tomljanovic has put her Wimbledon disappointment behind her and feels buoyed by a fresh boost of energy as she sets her sights on an Olympic medal in Paris.
Australia’s No.1 woman player is having to battle back into clay-court mode for the Olympic tests at Roland Garros after her grass-court season ended in anti-climax at Wimbledon.
Tomljanovic, on a stirring comeback after injuries and illness, had looked in top form while reaching the Birmingham Classic final on the grass, but the double Wimbledon quarter-finalist’s hopes of another big run at SW19 were then ruthlessly ended in the first round.
Hammered by her old rival Jelena Ostapenko, Tomljanovic quickly got over her disappointment by getting straight back onto clay at a tournament in Palermo, Italy, last week where she reached the last-16, only to be beaten by Australian compatriot Astra Sharma.
The difficulty of the switch from the Roland Garros clay, where she lost in the opening round of the French Open to Ukrainian 30th seed Dayana Yastremska, going straight into a largely-successful campaign on the grass and then back to the red stuff can’t be underestimated.
But the 31-year-old, ready for a second Olympic campaign, can’t wait to return to the famous Paris venue where she first made her name as a young Croatian hopeful a decade ago, reaching the French Open last-16.
“A hundred per cent, the Olympics is a big deal to me,” said Tomljanovic, who went straight off to prepare on clay back in Croatia before the Palermo event.
“I still feel like, 'why not me?' every tournament I go to. I always feel like I’ve put myself in a good mind space to do well, and plan on doing that pretty much for the rest of the year, and hopefully my body cooperates - starting with the Olympics.
“I think it's gonna be a really good energy boost for me just to be around all different athletes from Australia and all around the world.
“Is it perfect timing to go back to the clay? No, but I wouldn't change it. I don't regret choosing to go to Paris. It's going to be a tricky for the change of surface but I'm looking forward to it.”
So is Alexei Popyrin, who will be heading the men’s singles hopes, with a big question mark remaining over Alex de Minaur after the tournament-ending hip injury he suffered at Wimbledon before he was due to play Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals.
Popyrin’s last match at Wimbledon was against eventual finalist Djokovic, and he delivered a fine performance while succumbing in four sets.
“It means a lot. It's an amazing opportunity, an honour for me, for my family to be able to have my name in the Olympics," said Popyrin.
"I'm gonna go out there and give my all like I do every match - but I think the Olympics has an extra something to it. You're not only fighting for yourself, you're fighting for the whole country. That's something that you can't kind of replicate anywhere else. So huge honour, and I can't wait."
