Birmingham | It is a final between Tomljanovic and Putintseva

The Rothesay Classic in Birmingham will see Yulia Putintseva and Ajla Tomljanovic play for the trophy in Sunday’s final after beating Elisabetta Cocciaretto and Anastasia Potapova respectively in the semi-finals at Edgbaston Priory Club on Saturday.

I definitely didn’t expect to play a final here. I really try to take it one game at a time, as cliché as that is, I’ve never looked ahead. I’m not going to do that now either. I will do my best to prepare and give it my all, and when the week is over, I will reflect on the week. But you know you’re in a good place when the players’ room is empty. Ajla Tomljanovic

Putintseva, the Russian-born Kazakh, recorded a 6-2 6-2 victory over Italy’s Cocciaretto to reach her first grass-court final, although she already has two singles titles to her name.

She comfortably defeated the in-form Italian, while Tomljanovic, ranked 190th, ousted the only remaining seed in the tournament, Anastasia Potapova of Russia, 7-6(5) 6-4.

The Australian, returning from an eight-month break following an injury-plagued 2023, recorded her biggest ranking win since November 2022 thanks to her victory over seventh-seeded Potapova.

Both Tomljanovic and Putintseva have enjoyed their best spells on the grass over the past week, familiar with the fast nature of the surface.

The 31-year-old Tomljanovic is a well-versed grass player. Her Grand Slam breakthrough came at Wimbledon when she reached back-to-back quarter-finals in 2021 and 2022, while the Kazakh No. 2 previously reached the quarter-finals in Birmingham. back in 2019.

Tomljanovic also reached the quarter-finals of a former WTA 250 grass event at the Mallorca Open in 2018, where she eventually bowed out to Anastasija Sevastova, who was ranked in the Top 20 at the time.

The Australian also finished second in four career WTA finals, including a WTA 500 final in 2018, before climbing the rankings to reach a career-high of world number 32 in April last year.

This season, her comeback from injury was sidelined due to surgery in February, meaning she spent little time on the court until her opener in Paris.

Meanwhile, Putintseva’s decorated career saw her rise to world number 27 in the wake of her participation in the WTA 500 St Petersburg in 2017, falling just short of the title in three sets to eventual world number 1 Kristina Mladenovic.

The 29-year-old’s first silver came in 2019, winning a WTA 250 title in Nuremberg before capturing her second at the Hungarian Grand Prix two years later.

Putintseva’s streak in the Midlands comes after he reached the quarter-finals at two WTA 1000 events this year, including the Miami and Madrid Open.

Yulia Putintseva defeated the in-form Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the last 4 to reach her first grass court final in Birmingham

© Darren Staples/AFP via Getty Images

Tomljanovic’s resurgence continues after she survived a thrilling first set and then broke Potapova in the final game of the match to advance, marking her first appearance in a WTA-level final since Pattaya City in February 2019, and she will now try to win her first. career title.

“Playing on Sunday is always special because you really want to win, but at the same time you want to enjoy the moment,” said the 31-year-old. “So I really hope it will be one to remember.

“I don’t really want to think about that, you know, it’s my, I don’t know which song, final and I haven’t won a title yet, but it will definitely play a role tomorrow. ”

Tomljanovic becomes the third Australian to reach the Birmingham Classic final, after Jenny Byrne in 1992 and Ash Barty in 2017 and 2019.

“I feel very happy,” Tomljanovic continued. “I actually came into this week with not many expectations, but I was confident that I could play very good tennis here, so I was just very happy to reach the final.

“I’ve learned that on grass you can get humiliated very quickly, so I try not to think too much about how well or how poorly I’m playing. I just try to stay level and treat every match as a new one. .

“But I think it feels good to participate in tournaments and to have certainly won a lot of matches.

“Wimbledon is the one where I definitely want to peak. If I don’t win tomorrow, maybe it will be like this: I will do well there.”

Ajla Tomljanovic survived a thrilling first set before triumphing over Anastasia Potapova in the semi-finals

© Cameron Smith/Getty Images for LTA

Tomljanovic will face the diminutive Kazakh, who lead their head-to-head 4-1, with the Australian’s only success coming in Adelaide in 2020.

The former world number 32 plays in Birmingham on a protected rankings, and she has made significant progress towards the top 100 this week, from 190 to the mid-130s, with a jump to between 110 and 120 on the cards. cards if she beats Putintseva.

“I definitely didn’t expect to play a final here,” said Tomljanovic. “I really try to take it one game at a time, as cliché as that is, I’ve never looked ahead. I’m not going to do that now either.

“I will do my best to prepare and give it my all and when the week is over I will reflect on the week. But you know you’re in a good place when the players’ room is empty.”