Previewing the Quarterfinal Friday Action Ahead

The quarterfinal matches at the ATX Open feature an array of playing styles and storylines. Opening on Center Court is wild card Ajla Tomljanovic, the global fan favorite from Australia who has charmed everyone in Austin and, more crucially, is displaying the form that saw her reach a No. 32 ranking before being beset by injuries. Her opponent is Ena Shibahara, a qualifier and top doubles player now concentrating on singles. Shibahara is a 27-year-old Californian who plays for Japan as a tribute to her grandparents. She endeared herself to Austin fans when she cried tears of joy on court after reaching her first Hologic WTA Tour quarterfinal with a win on Wednesday night. The 31-year-old Tomljanovic, ranked No. 111, and Shibahara, No. 148, each entered Austin with only one Tour match victory this year. This will be their first matchup.

Signs point to a tight match between top-seeded American Jessica Pegula and Anna Blinkova. Even though World No. 4 Pegula has a 3-1 lead in their head-to-head matchup, their last three – all on hard courts – have gone to three sets. The powerfully built Blinkova, ranked No. 74, won last year’s meeting in Indian Wells, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

The evening session features the bottom half of the draw. Fifth-seeded McCartney Kessler faces 34-year-old Romanian Sorana Cîrstea, whose backhand prowess and unexpectedly potent serve fueled her upset over second-seeded Diana Shnaider. Cîrstea is back on tour after undergoing surgery for plantar fasciitis. The 25-year-old Kessler, ranked No. 56, defeated Coco Gauff in Dubai last week.

In the last quarterfinal, 26-year-old American Caroline Dolehide brings her powerful game against Greet Minnen. The 27-year-old Belgian advanced by only losing one game in the second round. Dolehide led 5-2, 40-0 before losing the first set to Varvara Gracheva but regained her footing and her big game to win 5-7, 6-2, 6-2.

Dolehide can serve over 120 miles an hour. “I’m working on it to be a little bit bigger,” she said after the match, “because that’s the next stage of cracking the top 70, top 60, 50 and beating those top girls. It’s always a key in my game because I’m a big player. I hit big shots.”