Australian Open 2019: Jo Konta survives titanic tussle to set up meeting Garbine Muguruza

If the key to success is to learn from your experiences, the early signs from Johanna Konta’s relationship with her new coach, Dmitri Zavialoff, are promising. Two weeks after losing to Alja Tomljanovic in Brisbane, Konta turned the tables on the world No 47 here at the Australian Open, winning 7-6, 2-6, 7-6 to secure a second-round meeting with Garbine Muguruza.

Konta, who began 2018 ranked inside the world’s top 10 but is now the world No 38, changed her coach at the end of last year for the third year in a row when she replaced Michael Joyce with Zavialoff, who used to work with Stan Wawrinka and Timea Bacsinszky.

Having begun her 2019 campaign with a straight-sets victory over Sloane Stephens in Brisbane, Konta then lost to Tomljanovic, a 25-year-old Australian with a game similar to her own.

The return match here was a hard-fought affair played in testing conditions as the temperature rose above 30C. Konta dropped serve in the very first game, recovered to win the tie-break at the end of the opening set 7-4, but then saw the second set slip from her grasp. The turning point appeared to come when Konta served at 2-3 and 30-30 when she made a horrible mess of what should have been an easy kill at the net.

Both players served well in the third set, which went to a deciding tie-break under the new first-to-10-points format. Konta, resorting to the drop shot too often, went 2-4 down but went on to win the tie-break 10-7, securing victory with a typically strong cross-court forehand.

Konta had watched 24 hours earlier as her fellow Briton, Katie Boulter, had celebrated prematurely in the deciding tie-break, thinking it was the first to seven points.

“I was very conscious to not get excited if I got to seven,” Konta said. “I saw Katie yesterday and thought: ‘That would be me. Just if you get to seven, you haven't won, just keep going.’ I was conscious about that.”

She added: “I think last time we played I didn’t adapt and adjust quickly enough. It took me too long to still do things on my terms. She did play exceptionally well, maybe better than in this match but I played better today.

“I was very clear when I went out there that I wanted to have more of a say in the match, accepting that she was going to play some very good tennis. I was happy that I served a lot better than when we played last time. The way I served helped me a lot.

“I thought I did a good job of trying to find the balance. Conditions were tough out there for both of us. I think I was just happy to be able to compete hard every single point.”

Konta said she was feeling confident about her game. “I feel good about the things that I can bring to a court,” she said. “I’m enjoying playing, I’m happy to be here, I’m happy to have come through and to be playing another match.”

The testing conditions were a reminder of when Konta last played her next opponent, Muguruza, at the 2015 US Open. The Briton beat the Spaniard in stifling heat and humidity after nearly three and a half hours in the longest women’s match at the tournament for 45 years.

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When they meet again here on Thursday temperatures of 32C are forecast, which might suit Konta, who spent the first 14 years of her life in Sydney and has often played well in the heat.

“I think I have had enough exposure to it at a young age,” Konta said. “I think I save my energy in trying to survive instead of complaining about something that I can't control.”

Muguruza, a former Wimbledon and French Open champion, has dropped to No 18 in the world rankings and has won only one minor title in the last year and a half, but Konta will not be under-estimating her.

“She’s a great player,” Konta said. “She’s got two Grand Slam titles to her name. She plays big tennis. She competes very well. It will be a big challenge to me.

“If I have learned anything over the number of years I have been on tour it’s that anybody can play at the very highest level on any given day. She is a heck of a player. I don't think you can go on court underestimating anyone - and especially not someone like her.”