The Pink Assassin making her mark
NICKNAMED the “Pink Assassin”, Isabella Bozicevic is making herself known in the right circles.
The Gold Coaster has surged to be the top-ranked girl in Australia for those born in 2001 and is determined to continue her rapid rise all the way to the top.
Bozicevic already has connections to the elite tennis world: She is cousins with Ajla Tomljanovic, the Australian who is ranked No.118 in the world, and is the girlfriend of men’s No.21 Nick Kyrgios.
World No.114 Lin Zhu was among the field this week at the Pro Tour event in Playford near Adelaide, where Bozicevic played in the qualifying draw.
Mixing it with top-level players is no longer an overwhelming prospect.
“Last year I walked around and it was pretty cool but now seeing it, I feel like I belong now,” said the 16-year-old.
“I don’t feel very wowed or amazed any more.”
Following a current fourday training block in Melbourne, she will head to Traralgon on Tuesday for another tournament where she hopes to impress Tennis Australia officials enough to earn a wildcard into the Australian Open junior draw.
Bozicevic is known for her drive and admits to white line fever: “I love competing and getting into that zone.”
Her ultra-aggressive gameplay from the baseline is part of the reason she is known as the Pink Assassin, with a high priority placed on her “weapons” – her serve and forehand – much like Sam Stosur.
“It’s a nickname I get called on court sometimes because I am so aggressive with my game style and I love the colour pink so it just meshed,” Bozicevic said.
Having close ties to Tomljanovic as a role model in the game is only going to aid her development, she feels.
“Ajla guides me a lot through my tennis,” she said.
“I really look up to her and the way she does things. We did a training session in Brisbane a couple of days ago and they came over to Christmas, so yeah it was good.”
Grand slams might be her long-term dream but for now Bozicevic says it is all about developing her game and chipping away at a WTA world ranking.