Prime-ranked Birrell embodying camaraderie amongst Aussie girls | 6 March, 2025 | All Information | Information and Options | Information and Occasions

Melbourne, VIC, Australia, 6 March 2025 | Matt Trollope

Kimberly Birrell was modest in her response when requested the way it felt to be Australia’s top-ranked lady.

The Queenslander mentioned it didn’t truly change quite a bit for her, and as a substitute gave a shout-out to a lot of her fellow Aussies when discussing the milestone on a current episode of The Sit-Down podcast.

“It’s been cool to I assume be reminded of it in just a few interviews and take a minute to only admire the place I’m at,” she mentioned, “as a result of as a child, if you happen to had have mentioned that I’d be ranked the best in Australia, I simply most likely wouldn’t have believed it or I simply would have been so amazed.

“Clearly there’s been fairly just a few accidents inside our feminine cohort inside Australia, so I’m not evaluating myself to the opposite ladies. And I do know that Dasha [Saville] and Ajla [Tomljanovic], once they’re again enjoying at their greatest, they’re gonna be ranked nicely inside the highest 100.”

Aussie camaraderie, how good 💚💛

The Sit-Down with @kimbirrell98 🎧 https://t.co/sxtzlxGsGi pic.twitter.com/Rl1ZV1u1aw

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) February 24, 2025

Since that interview, Birrell, who peaked at world No.75 after a scorching begin to 2025, has been joined – as she predicted – by Tomljanovic within the high 100, in addition to teenaged expertise Maya Joint. Along with Olivia Gadecki, there are actually 4 Aussie girls inside the highest 100 for the primary time since 2019. Saville can be knocking on the door, poised to make it 5 after coming inside a set of the current Merida ultimate, a WTA 500 match.

It’s an Australian girls’s tennis surge that has stuffed Birrell with pleasure, and bodes nicely forward of the nation’s Billie Jean King Cup qualifier tie in opposition to Colombia and Kazakhstan subsequent month.

RANKING MOVERS: Australian girls surge into high 100

“I’ve represented Australia in BJK Cup just a few occasions now, and I simply have the most effective time each single time, and it’s such an honour to symbolize Australia and to put on the inexperienced and gold,” she mentioned. “So to have the ability to try this in April, after which to have it in Brissy, in what’s principally my dwelling city, will likely be completely superb. I believe I can converse for the entire ladies that I hope we will convey some actually good tennis and preserve doing what we do on courtroom and make everybody proud.

“I believe it’s actually particular that we’re all nice mates off courtroom, and all the ladies are such good individuals, and other people I genuinely wish to be round on a regular basis – it’s not laborious after we get to be collectively as a workforce.

“Truthfully we most likely want we may do it extra actually because we’ve such a good time after we get the prospect to [represent Australia together].”

A fast scan of Birrell’s social media proves simply how robust the bond runs between Australia’s elite girls gamers.

Whether or not it’s on the coaching courtroom, in doubles, out for dinner throughout tournaments, on the Newcombe Medal Blue Carpet or when attending live shows or weddings, the enjoyment once they all come collectively is obvious.

“As a person sport, tennis can get fairly lonely, and significantly coming from Australia, we dwell fairly distant from the remainder of the world and we don’t get the prospect to return dwelling too usually between tournaments,” Birrell defined. “So I believe all of us kind of search for that camaraderie, not simply inside the BJK Cup weeks however all year long too.

“It actually was set by instance with Sam [Stosur], Casey [Dellacqua], Mol [Alicia Molik], Pratty [Nicole Pratt], and you would simply inform they had been all nice associates, too. I actually regarded as much as that, so it’s cool that we’ve kind of been capable of proceed that.

“However it’s simply really easy, as a result of everybody’s so good, and we observe one another’s outcomes and ship messages, and yeah, I really feel actually privileged to be part of it.”

Two of these former Australian greats – Stosur and Pratt – have been important in Birrell’s rise to a career-high place, which started in earnest within the second half of 2024 when she certified for the US Open then reached the WTA ultimate in Osaka.

Stosur, Australia’s Billie Jean King Cup workforce captain, sat in her entourage as Birrell stormed to the quarterfinals in Brisbane, her first match of the 12 months. Stosur later introduced Birrell as her first choose for the Aussie BJK Cup squad subsequent month.

Convey it on, Brisbane! @BJKCup is BACK 🙌

🇦🇺 Australia
🇰🇿 Kazakhstan
🇨🇴 Colombia

Get across the inexperienced and gold for this qualifying spherical at Pat Rafter Enviornment – Tickets on sale tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/1J8JJi0HeH

— TennisAustralia (@TennisAustralia) February 19, 2025

Birrell’s spike in type has coincided with working extra carefully with Pratt, the nationwide girls’s workforce coach who got here on board in a extra structured means after Wimbledon.

Her spirits have been buoyed additional by the comeback of Storm Hunter, one other Pratt protege with whom Birrell is at present travelling.

“It’s so superb to see Stormy again on courtroom, and I’m so pumped for her that she’s going to be enjoying,” Birrell mentioned. “I’ve actually missed her on tour the final 10 months, so when she mentioned she was coming again for Austin, I couldn’t have been happier.

“I’ve simply been so fortunate to have Pratty in my nook, and specifically within the final 12 months, however all through my complete profession principally. She’s been there, and she or he’s such an advocate for girls’s tennis.

“I believe we make an incredible workforce. I like having the ability to share these experiences along with her and journey slightly bit extra along with her, and I’ve simply realized a lot. She’s such a wealth of data; I don’t assume many individuals know extra in regards to the girls’s recreation than she does.

“So to have somebody like that in your nook is fairly superb.”

Birrell has since led a gaggle of 4 Aussie girls into the principle draw at Indian Wells this week. The highest seed in qualifying, Birrell received two matches in straight units to e book her spot within the prestigious WTA 1000 area, and was joined by Tomljanovic, Joint and Maddison Inglis.

MORE: Aussies set for Indian Wells as six qualify for fundamental draw

With the wind of their sails, the timing couldn’t be excellent with nationwide illustration on the horizon, and spots but to be stuffed within the Australian Billie Jean King Cup workforce.

There’s a wholesome competitors and constructive feeling among the many group, and in what’s already shaping as a banner season for Australia’s girls, we may see success breed extra success.