Imperial in the final of the Australian Open, Ashleigh Barty offered her very first title on Saturday in Melbourne, on her land. The world number 1, new queen of the WTA circuit after her triumphs at Roland-Garros three years ago, then Wimbledon last year, has already built an impressive record, at only 25 years old.
She had dumped everything for cricket
A precocious talent and winner of a junior Wimbledon in singles at 15, Ashleigh Barty was promised a brilliant career in the world of the little yellow ball. But caught up in the pressure and pace of travel, the rising star of Australian tennis went into depression. And dump everything overnight. She left the circuit in the fall of 2014 to try her luck in her other passion, cricket, after a meeting organized with the Australian women’s national team.
Barty is evolving at a good level with the formation of Brisbane, offering the possibility of breaking into the national championship. She will combine eleven matches in 2015, before (re) taking everyone by surprise and returning to tennis at the age of 18, to finally return to the circuit two years later.
She ended four decades of scarcity
The image, as much as the symbolism, was beautiful. By posing around the trophy won a few minutes earlier by the world number 1, Evonne Goolagon (4 titles in Melbourne in the 1970s) and Ashleigh Barty brought together nearly fifty years of Australian tennis history. Who had been waiting for 44 years for the coronation of one of his little proteges, and the crowning of local Chris O’Neil. A scarcity that looks like eternity for “Aussie” tennis, which worked on this sport in the seventies with nine women’s titles between 1970 and 1978. Barty is the fifth Australian of the Open era to be crowned in Melbourne. Among men, the last local winner remains Mark Edmondson, in 1976.
She made a “Wawrinka”
Adding Melbourne to its list, the Ipswish (Queensland) tornado hit hard. Winner of Roland-Garros in 2019 then of Wimbledon in 2021 for her first two Major finals, Barty stretched her invincibility in the Grand Slam final, on three different surfaces. A nice feat for the Australian who imitates the Swiss Stan Wawrinka, also winner of his first three Major finals (Australian Open 2014, Roland-Garros 2015 and US Open 2016).
She only lost one set in 2022
His title, his 15th on the WTA circuit, was acquired after a tournament flown over. Vastly superior to all her opponents, Ashleigh Barty will not have lost a single set throughout the fortnight – only two players have achieved such a performance, Steffi Graf and Mary Pierce. In her seven matches (and fourteen sets), the new Australian queen only conceded only 30 games, or just over 4 per match!
A real machine for crushing her opponents, the 25-year-old player has been unstoppable since the start of the year. She conceded only one set in 2022, in 11 games. It was in his first match, against Cori Gauff in Adelaide. Since then, she has had a string of successes in two winning sets.
She can aim for the Grand Slam
After skipping the tournament in 2020 because of the Covid, surprise eliminated in the 3rd round by American Shelby Rogers in 2021, Barty will now be able to ramp up to his next big goal, the US Open (August 29-September 11), the only Major still missing from his list. From Justine Henin to Chris Evert, several legends of women’s tennis agree that the Australian has all the qualities to achieve the Grand Slam in her career.
The world number 1 for almost two and a half years, a very discreet character who remains little known to the general public, would then definitely make a name in the history of tennis. Only ten women have achieved this feat, which would further confirm her status as the new patroness of the women’s circuit.