LONDON – Much of Wimbledon is synonymous with tradition. Champagne cork popping, dress code, sunburn petrons, strawberries and cream and pims No. 1 are common sounds about excessive consumption.
Then there are other traditions: the defending champion male champion opens the game on center court on Monday, while the current female champion does the same on Tuesday.
Last year’s women’s champion Ashley Barty will not play on Tuesday.
Instead of praising the center court at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, she will play golf in New Jersey with Michael Phelps, Brian Lara and Harry Kane. In March, Ash Barty, 25, decided to retire from tennis, as she entered the 114th week of the world rankings.
So Simona Halep will start the play on Center Court on Tuesday instead of Barty. Although she still loves the sport, Barty is unlikely to compete this year – according to sources – as she is exploring her life after tennis and enjoying it.
Was just there There was a 50-day period between Barty winning the Australian Open and announcing his retirement but the decision went on for some time. After winning the 2019 French Open, he was the first to speak seriously about his retirement to those close to him, but it was a lifelong dream to win Wimbledon that took him further.
After realizing this goal in July 2021, people close to him knew that his interest in the sport had waned. Coach Craig Tiger said he knows he’s fighting a losing battle to keep the star motivated while he’s in Tokyo for the Olympics. There she won the doubles, but world number 48 Sarah Soribes was knocked out by Tormo in the first round of the singles, Tesser told her departure press conference, “It was hard to maintain.” [Barty] There was not much left in it, [the] There was no motivation. “
But she set herself up for the final shot in January 2022 to win the Australian Open in front of her home back and family. The people of Melbourne have been waiting for the women’s singles champion for 44 years and on January 29, she ended the drought after an unparalleled competition. Tournament where she left no set and only served once.
Standing at Rod Laver Arena, she defeated Daniel Collins 6-3, 7-6 (2) in the final, knowing for herself that nothing matched those feelings – it was her “full-circle moment,” as he put it.
While people close to her knew the possibility of this ending, she was still publicly targeting events. She had expressed a desire to play in the Billy Jean King Cup in March, although she pulled out of Indian Wells and Miami to “fix her body” after recovering from the Australian Open.
And then on March 22, a six-minute interview with longtime friend and ex-spouse Casey Deluka took place on his Instagram channel, where he announced his retirement. “This is the right time to pursue other dreams,” Barty said, adding that double wins at Wimbledon and Melbourne lessened the itch to try something new.
Barty said, “I know how hard it takes to bring out the best in myself and I’ve told my team many times, I don’t have that anymore.” “I don’t have the physical drive, the emotional will and everything I need to challenge myself to a higher level anymore. All I know is that I’m spending – I just know physically that I have nothing to give. And that is the success for me. I gave my all for this beautiful game of tennis. “
A few days after his announcement, he held a 20-minute press conference in Brisbane and was asked about his plans. He replied: “You have to wait and see …. I don’t give you everything right now.… Okay.… You can be patient. … Patience is a virtue.”
She said it was an “open book” with no secrets – yet revealed some plans at a news conference – but for the next issue she often mentioned “Ash Barty the Person, Ash Barty not the Athlete”.
WTA Tour It’s brutal – a terrifying 44-week experience where you even step foot in the house. Although she said at her departure press conference that she was not a “prisoner” for the game, for so many days she was controlled according to schedule.
In 2011, at the age of 15, she won the Wimbledon Junior Championships. He left the game exactly three years later and played professional cricket for two years. Tennis patted her on the back, but after her tremendous success, that’s enough.
What she missed in becoming the best tennis player in the world, she settled in the middle of her departure interview. She missed her family, she wanted to see her niece grow up and she wanted to be around her dogs. She has a fianc – professional golfer Gary Kisick, both of whom got married last November – and they have built a house next to Brookwater Golf Course just outside Brisbane.
So Barty’s future will be on her own terms – out of public view, let the world come when she wants to. And he had plans.
In late February, Barty visited Uluru for her role as Tennis Australia’s First Nations Ambassador. She took her Australian Open trophy there – tied it to her roots and thought of using her influence to enhance the game.
Barty is proud of her native Australian descent.
“I love my heritage, I love celebrating my heritage.”
Ash Barty
After her initial victory in Melbourne, she said, “I love my heritage, I love celebrating my heritage. That’s what connects me to all of you today. That’s what connects me to the land.”
At the heart of their plans is to give more opportunities to local youth to get involved in sports. “I’ve always wanted time to contribute in other ways – I’m really willing to give back, that’s what brings me light from the inside,” she said at her retirement press conference.
The effects of that visit in February have already been felt in the north. “Club tennis has grown rapidly since their journey,” Beth Kerd, Tennis NT’s inclusion and diversity manager, told news.com.au. “Coming into the world’s No. 1 NT right after winning the Australian Open really inspired people. He was seen as an indigenous leader.
Barty will also publish a series of six children’s books called “Young Ash” in July, which he hopes will inspire “new readers”. The books are partly inspired by Barty’s 5-year-old niece, Lucy.
It all comes back to what Barty said about the importance of attending his retirement news conference with people close to him and being part of his country again. So we are not likely to see him in another game on a grand tour.
Since her retirement, some have questioned whether she will return to cricket, given the success of her first attempt. Australia’s women’s captain Meg Lanning said on April 6: “If she wanted to come and there was another crack in cricket [we] Would definitely be interested to talk to him. She was very good [it] She had played last time.
Golf is one of his greatest hobbies. On April 2, Barty won another trophy at the Brookwater Golf and Country Club Ladies event. She earned $ 20 in the first place – her tennis career earnings were $ 23.8m. Barty said at the time that he would “laugh out loud” at the prospect of going into golf professionally. In 2019, when Tiger Woods saw him play in the Pro-Am, despite the seal of approval, he confirmed: “He’s got a very good swing, are you kidding me?”
When the second As tours begin at Wimbledon, Barty will play in the Icons Golf Series at the Liberty National Golf Club in New Jersey. She will be on the world team led by Ernie Els and will play alongside the US team of cricket’s Brian Lara, boxing’s Canelo Alvarez and football’s Harry Kane and Pep Guardiola with Fred Kapuls and Michael Phelps, Michael Strahan and Ben Rothlisberger. Face,
“I hope that by participating in the series we can encourage more women and girls around the world to participate in golf,” Barty said. She will be in St. Andrews for the R&A Open in July. But those scenes are expected to be fleeting for some time to come.
Here’s what she said on April 10 to indicate where she’s happiest. When she spoke about the launch of her new books, she was asked if she had any regrets about retiring. “I’m so happy,” Barty said. “I’ve spent a lot of time with my beautiful family and with my nieces and nephews, and you haven’t been able to put a smile on my face in the last few weeks.”
Sources told ESPN that his short- to long-term plans include his charity focus and ways to contribute to youth sports in Australia.
In November, “My Dream Team: A Memoir of Tennis and Teamwork.” This will shed more light on retirement decisions and what lies ahead. Barty still has that competitive spirit, but as she wrote in a recent column, while the fire of tennis is always burning, don’t expect her to ever come back to the center anytime soon. She’s too busy enjoying being “just‘ Ash Barty ’.
Barty wrote in his CodeSports column, “Is this permanent? The doors of my career are now more tightly closed.… But I have the key to the lock and who knows what will happen in the future.”
She added: “But before anyone runs to get tickets for the 2023 Australian Open, I can hold my horses in the hope that I can come back to defend my title. I’m sure my future is elsewhere. “