Kimberly Birrell has continued her impressive start to the year, defeating Romanian Jaqueline Cristian 5-7 6-1 7-5 at the Adelaide International.
In doing so the 27-year-old has secured her first semifinal appearance at a WTA 500 event and will jump at least 30 places in the rankings. “Oh man, I don’t know what to say,” an elated Birrell said after the match.
In a gruelling and high-quality match that lasted over three hours long, it was Birrell who stormed out of the blocks, taking a 5-3 lead in the first set. Cristian then got on a roll, winning the last five games of the set, despite Birrell having game and break points in each game.
Despite this, Birrell showed resilience by mounting a comeback of her own, winning the next five games in a row and converting all her opportunities to comfortably close out the second set. She kept moving up the court and taking the ball early to deny Cristian the chance to dictate points, with the Romanian preferring to play first-strike tennis.
The match tightened up in the deciding set with continual breaks of serve, with both players displaying a brutal level of tennis. However, Birrell kept her nose in front, clinching the crucial break to go 6-5 up in the third with a bruising backhand down-the-line winner, before finally serving out the match.
With a high first-serve percentage sitting at 71 per cent, Birrell’s serve was crucial to her victory. She also hit 38 winners, showcasing a fearless attitude with a clear intent to be aggressive and take charge. While Birrell’s statistics were impressive, a key characteristic of the win was her resilience under pressure.
Taking a bathroom break after losing a tough opening set, Birrell spoke of her mental fortitude that brought about the comeback. “I just kept telling myself to just keep trying and fighting for every point. It was tricky at some moments at the end of the first set but credit to her, she really brought it every time I had a break point or a game point, so I just tried to keep my head down,” Birrell said.
“When I came back out to start the second set, I just told myself that I’d get those opportunities again if I keep fighting.”
The Queenslander also pointed to her conditioning, acknowledging her team for preparing her body for these tough encounters. “And just physically it goes to show how much I’ve put into my pre-season,” she said. “(A) really big thank you to my team who’ve been with me for a long time. They’ve put in a lot of hard work over the last few weeks and off-season to get us to perform like this.”
Birrell will play the winner of Canadian teen sensation Victoria Mboko and defending Australian Open champion Madison Keys.