Ashley Barty is an Australian tennis player who became the first racket in the world in 2019. She stands out among the rivals for her stable play, power and self-confidence.
Biography: early years
Ashleigh Barty was born on April 24, 1996 in Ipswich, in the Australian state of Queensland. In addition to her, the family had two older daughters - Sarah and Ellie. Robert's father worked in the national library of the state, and Josie's mother worked as a radiologist at the hospital.
Australia is considered a country of expatriates. The descendants of the aborigines in it are indeed much smaller than the descendants of the inhabitants of Asia and Europe, who moved there over a century ago. Ashley is a descendant of the indigenous people of the Green Continent through his father. The mother's parents are from outsiders. They moved to Australia from the UK.
Ashley started playing tennis at the age of four. In Australia, this sport is well developed, and many parents take their children to the tennis sections. Ashley's parents were no exception. She also tried her hand at netball as a child. In Australia, it is no less popular than tennis. It is a women's sport that resembles basketball. Ashley quickly abandoned the netball. She didn't like that he was "purely girly." Ashley was also embarrassed that by that time her older sisters were more successful in netball.
She decided to concentrate on tennis. Ashley has always loved training with older boys. Already at the age of nine, she conducted training games with fifteen-year-old boys. And at the age of 12, Ashley played on equal terms with adults. Of course, then her rivals were not professional players, but nevertheless.
Ashley was considered a very promising junior. In 2011, she won the Wimbledon tournament. Then she was barely 15 years old. After that, Barty became famous at home.
Ashley was good at junior and doubles. So, in 2013, in a duet with Casey Dellaqua, she reached the finals at the Australian Open and Wimbledon. Thanks to these results, Ashley became the second racket of the world in the junior ranking.
Since 2011, Barty has literally begun to live on wheels. She was at home only a month a year. The rest of the time Ashley spent at training camps, training and on the move. It was enough for three years of such a life. In 2014, Ashley decided to take a break from her tennis career. With such a statement she made after the US Open. Then in an interview Ashley said that she just wants to live the life of an ordinary teenager for a while.
Then she had no idea about leaving tennis. She just wanted to rest. Parents and coach did not interfere with her decision. During the break, Barty was resting in nature, spending time with friends.
A few months later, she decided to try herself in another sport. The choice fell on cricket. The idea of going in for team sports seemed interesting to her. She decided to start with some trial workouts. She soon began playing in the Brisbane City League. Ashley showed good results in cricket. She managed to gain the most points in the team. She played cricket for one season.
Career
In 2016, Ashley decided to return to tennis. She started with doubles at home. Barty performed in a duet with Jessica Moore. Three months later, Ashley returned to the singles. Soon she was injured - a broken arm, which forced her to take a forced break for several months. Barty returned to court only the following season. She performed superbly at the tournament in Kuala Lumpur, winning singles and doubles competitions. Despite her injury, Ashley was able to enter the top twenty in both doubles and singles.
2018 was a very successful year for Barty. In many tournaments, she reached the final stages. And at the Elite Trophy WTA became the winner. This is the second most important final competition. Barty finished the 2018 season, becoming the fifteenth racket in the world. Then for her it was the best result in her career.
2019 was truly a triumphant year for Ashley. She again did not submit to the Australian Open, but in June she won for the first time at the Grand Slam tournament - Roland Garros. Her rival in the final was Market Vondrusheva. Ashley got the better of her in two sets. In the same month, Barty won the tournament in Birmingham, defeating the athlete from Germany Julia Görges in the final. In that tournament, Ashley had one of the best serves, which, combined with a powerful forehand and a very sharp cut from the left, led to a brilliant result.
At the end of June, Ashley became the first racket in the world, 27th in a row. Before her, only one Australian woman, Yvonne Gulagong, had won this title. It was back in 1976. Yvonne lasted only two weeks at the summit. Ashley is holding on more. She replaced Naomi Osaka from Japan. She has been at the top of the rankings since January 28, 2019.
Personal life
Ashley Barty is not married. In an interview, she admitted that her immediate plans for a wedding and family are not included. The athlete is passionate about tennis and spends a lot of time in training. In between competitions, Ashley goes fishing with her parents, reads books and plays computer games. She also enjoys other sports, but as a cheerleader. According to photos on Instagram, Ashley is often attending football games.
