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Before she became the player who effectively ended one of the greatest tennis players of all time’s career, Ajla Tomljanovic told reporters she had a thought while lying in bed one day about the possibility of facing Serena Williams for the first time inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Tomljanovic added that she — like countless others in attendance for Friday night’s third-round matchup of the U.S. Open and those on the streets outside of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center grounds and watching at home — has been a fan of the 23-time major champion since she was a kid.
So to take a 7-5, 6-7 (4-7), 6-1 win over Williams in front of a sold-out crowd of people who wanted nothing more than to see her opponent prevail, Tomljanovic said she felt like the villain.
“Probably the most conflicted I’ve ever felt after a win,” said Tomljanovic, who moves on to the fourth round against Russia’s Ludmilla Samsonova. “During the match, I was so eager to win. I mean, I wanted to win as much as the next person because I didn’t look at her like, ‘Oh, Serena, her last tournament.
