Even in the brutal dry heat of the California desert, Ajla Tomljanovic could be forgiven for wishing the dying embers of an unforgettable summer would last forever. Having reached her first major quarter-final at Wimbledon and made the best run of her career at the US Open, Tomljanovic defeated fifth seed Garbiñe Muguruza 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 to cause the biggest upset so far at Indian Wells.
It was the Croatia-born Australian’s first win over a top-10 player for two years, and only the fourth of her career. That it should have come against Muguruza, an athlete hewn in her own image – tall, powerful and shot through with a deep and occasionally self-defeating vein of perfectionism – will surely have made victory all the sweeter. Tomljanovic had lost three of her previous four meetings with the Spaniard, but claiming the scalp of a player who arrived in Palm Springs fresh from lifting the Chicago title offered further evidence that, at 28, Tomljanovic is coming to understand her game and her disposition better than ever.
“I get really happy when I get into these moments where I get nervous and I manage to stay calm and focus just on the task,” said Tomljanovic, who will face Tamara Zidansek, the 26th seed and French Open semi-finalist, in round three.
“Even when I have in the past missed my chances or had really tough losses against the top players, you’re like, ‘Well, OK, I’m going to learn from it.’ But the next time you’re in the same position, it’s never really the same. It’s always a new moment. But you can take the lessons before and apply it. The fact that it’s always new – in that moment, you have to problem solve.
“I’m just happy that I took everything I could from all the losses before, and just did my best to react in a way that will benefit me.
“I knew that I could have lost again [after] putting myself in good situations. But I’m going out there knowing that I’m capable, and that I can come up with the goods when it matters.”
Like Emma Raducanu, who also tumbled to a surprise defeat after receiving a first-round bye, Muguruza struggled to find her range off the ground against an opponent who had acclimatised to the unique playing conditions at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden with a convincing first-round win. She even started like Raducanu, winning her opening service game convincingly and going 0-30 up against serve before Tomljanovic steadied the ship.
As the easy power that is her calling card proved elusive, however, Muguruza began to press too hard, 15 unforced errors flowing from her racket by the end of the first set. The quality of the Australian’s returning only added to her angst; despite landing a healthy 79% of her first serves in the opener, Muguruza was broken three times.
Having finished the first set in desultory fashion, double-faulting to drop a game she had led 40-0, Muguruza began to show greater patience and composure. As she began to adapt to both the conditions and her opponent, lengthening the rallies and drawing mistakes from Tomljanovic, there was a dramatic reversal of roles. It is often said the Spaniard lacks a plan B, and yet here she was, showcasing an extensive repertoire of drop shots, sliced forehands and topspin lobs to complement her trademark power game and snatch six of the next seven games.
It looked like a decisive shift of momentum, and there was a time not so long ago when it might have been. But Tomljanovic is made of sterner stuff these days, the perfectionist in her counterbalanced by a stronger mentality in the clutch moments. She will have hated the 14 unforced errors she made in the second set almost as much as the way she let slip a two-game lead in the decider. But how she will be encouraged by her dogged resistance in the seventh game, where she went toe-to-toe with Muguruza from the baseline to wrest the Spaniard’s serve from her once more after trailing 40-15. How she will be heartened by the fortitude she showed in consolidating that advantage with a solid hold before claiming a second break to seal the match.
“Everyone in this tournament, we all go through the same emotions,” reflected Tomljanovic, who said she has benefited from working with a psychologist over the past year. “The one that comes out on top is the one that gets over it as quickly as possible, but still takes the lessons out of it.
“Just learning what to do in certain moments is really, I think, key for me at this stage in my career.”
Elsewhere, sixth seed Maria Sakkari was beaten, losing 5-7, 6-3, 6-2 to Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic. There was better news for Ons Jabeur, however, the Tunisian claiming a WTA Tour-leading 45th victory of the year with a 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3 win over Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia. Karolina Pliskova, the top seed, defeated the Polish qualifier Magdalena Frech, 7-5, 6-2.
Also through is Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 title winner, who saw off Alison Riske 7-5, 5-7, 6-2 to set up a third-round meeting with Anett Kontaveit, the 18th seed, who beat the Canadian in straight sets at Eastbourne. “It’s a different surface so things can go either way, because both of us have very suitable hard-court game styles,” said Andreescu, seeded 16th. “I think it’s going to be a good match. I definitely have to bring my A game, because she’s a really good player.”
In the men’s draw, Daniil Medvedev opened his Indian Wells campaign with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Mackenzie McDonald of the US. “I’m really pleased, because usually I haven’t played well in Indian Wells, and I haven’t been playing that well in practice,” said Medvedev. “[I am] really happy with my performance. That’s the most important, no matter how I played before the tournament.”