Ash Barty retirement: Coach Craig Tyzzer says Australian Open win was for Australia
Ash Barty was running on empty when she arrived at this year’s Australian Open, but fuelled by the love and passion of thousands of supporters she willed herself to a historic title.
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It was the title won for Australia.
Ash Barty’s cup may have been empty when she arrived at Melbourne Park in January but she fed off the energy of an adoring public desperate for the first home winner of the Australian Open in more than 40 years.
Barty had achieved everything she wanted in the sport when she won at Wimbledon last year — her second grand slam singles trophy after snaring the French Open in 2019.
But there was one last quest - and coach Craig Tyzzer said it was for Australia.
“I think she won the Aussie Open for everyone, not just for her,” Tyzzer said.
“I think that was for everyone else and I don’t think there’s anything left in the tank.”
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Barty did not lost a set in Melbourne and looked a cut above the rest of the world.
But behind the scenes, she was spent and ready to retire.
Given that, Tyzzer said her charge through the tournament was “unbelievable”.
“It was really difficult to do the pre-season for the lead-up to the Aussie summer circuit but she just put her head down,” he said.
“I feel the hardest thing was trying to motivate her to get a spark to go, hey, you need to be out there because her tennis and her mindset, she was so relaxed and so easy with it all it was almost like she didn’t care whether she won or lost.
“But she obviously did.”
Perhaps that explains Barty’s very unBarty-like roar when she won the title.
So near the end but playing with such freedom, having such fun, giving so much joy.
Did Barty know the crosscourt forehand she hit past Danielle Collins would be the exclamation point to her career?
“I think (in) that that moment, I was fully engrossed,” Barty said.
“It was such an incredible moment to share with so many people in the crowd.
“That that crowd, the night of the final of the Australian Open was like nothing I’ve ever played in front of before and it was so much fun to enjoy that with them — as well as my team — but it was a brilliant way to finish.”
Who knows what’s next for Barty?
She’s certainly playing coy on her future, telling the gathered media they would have to wait patiently for the next chapter.
But if we never see Barty on a tennis court, cricket pitch, footy oval or golf course again, we’ll always have that Saturday night in Melbourne.
BARTY STAYS COY ON RETIREMENT PLANS
Ash Barty dodged questions about her immediate future on Thursday – but says there are “no secrets” behind her shock retirement.
The Australian superstar and three-time grand slam winner said she was excited for what was next after giving everything she could to tennis, but continued to keep the public guessing about what that move might be.
Barty, who has previously walked away from tennis to play for the Brisbane Heat in the women’s Big Bash League, has been linked to a switch back to cricket, or the AFLW or even becoming a professional golfer.
Speaking for the first time since Wednesday’s stunning announcement, Barty was coy about her future.
“You have to wait and see. I’m not giving you everything right now. It’s all right. You can be patient. Patience is a virtue …. We’ll see,” Barty said.
“I have seen some brilliant photoshops as a jockey, lawn bowls … I love sport. I’m a sport nut, like a lot of Australians are.
“I’ll be lured to it. I have always been an athlete in the sense of trying different things but we’ll see how we go.”
Barty, who claimed grand slam titles on all three surfaces at Wimbledon, the French Open and, of course, this year’s drought-breaking Australian Open title, said she left the sport with no regrets.
“I’d given absolutely everything that I could to this sport, and I knew that it wouldn’t be fair to my team and the people that have invested so much time and energy into my life to not be 100 per cent committed for them,” Barty said.
“So it’s been a hell of a journey. I wouldn’t change a thing and I certainly have no regrets.
“I’m an open book. I’m not hiding anything, I’ve got no secrets. I am just so proud of all of the work that I have done with my team.
“We have done this together right from the start, have enjoyed every single minute and, like I said, we have no regrets. We have achieved so much together and it’s been fun on the way.”
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SERENA’S TOUCHING WORDS FOR FIERCE RIVAL
The biggest name in women’s tennis has paid tribute to Australian superstar Ash Barty.
Serena Williams sent the now retired three-time grand slam winner a message on Twitter, wishing her luck in her next chapter.
Barty shocked the sporting world when she announced her retirement on Wednesday.
Just 25, Barty is still the world No. 1 and hadn’t lost a match in 2022.
“I can’t lie I was sad to read your decision but also happy for your new chapter,” Williams wrote.
“Always your fan close up and afar. Sending all my love.”
CALLS FOR BARTY TO BE CROWNED AUSTRALIAN OF THE YEAR
Tennis great Pat Rafter has called for retiring legend Ashleigh Barty to be crowned Australian of the Year – and offered to rename his own stadium in her honour.
Barty announced her shock retirement on Wednesday afternoon, drawing the curtain on a remarkable career that delivered three grand slam titles by the age of 25.
Her exit from the game triggered an outpouring of support from around the tennis world. And Rafter said no honour was too great for the humble champion – even conceding the renaming of Pat Rafter Arena, the centre court at the Queensland Tennis Centre.
“Let’s rip it down!” he told Channel Nine.
More seriously, however, Rafter believed Barty deserved every accolade that comes her way, with one particular honour sticking in his mind.
“Maybe Australian of the Year, I’d love to see her do that - she is quintessentially Australian,” he said.
“She has a great worldwide presence. There is nothing more deserved than that for me with her.
“But (re-name) the stadium (Pat Rafter Arena), she can have it. I think she’s really deserved of every stadium in Australia as you guys mentioned.”
While the decision stunned fans around the world, Rafter said the early retirement would help Barty in her transition into a post-playing-career life.
“The great thing about Ash, she’s going out on her terms. A lot of sportspeople when they retire they are going out with other injuries or being forced into retirement,” Rafter said.
“So they struggle with that transition. Ash won’t. She knows what she wants. She wants to have a pretty simple life.
“I’m pretty sure she wants to go to the footy on Friday night and watch her beloved Richmond win. That would be the ultimate day for her, at home with the family and having a game of golf.”
OSAKA, RADUCANU PRAISE BARTY BRAVERY
News of Barty’s retirement overshadowed early round play at the WTA/ATP Miami Open on Wednesday, where four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka revealed she had learned of the news in the early hours.
“I feel really happy for her. I know last year was quite tough. She didn’t really go home at all,” Osaka said.
“I think that certainly took a toll. But it was also really inspiring to watch how dedicated she was that entire year. I think she can leave with no regrets.”
Britain’s reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu said Barty’s retirement illustrated “how personal everyone’s objectives and goals are.”
“I feel like if I set out with a goal when I’m starting to play tennis, once I’m happy, it kind of makes sense to finish on a high,” Raducanu said.
American world number 11 Danielle Collins meanwhile said Barty’s retirement was a victory for financial empowerment.
“It’s so cool being able to retire at 25,” Collins said in Miami. “What other profession would you be able to do that in? There’s not too many. I think it’s incredible for our sport.
“This sport empowers us in a way financially that is really unique to other sports.”
THE CHALLENGERS READY TO REPLACE BARTY
With Barty expected to ask that her name be removed from the rankings, opportunity beckons for others.
Iga Swiatek and Paula Badosa can take over as the world No 1, depending on results at the Miami Open, while there will likely be chances for Barbora Krejcikova, Anett Kontaveit, Karolina Pliskova, Aryna Sabalenka and Maria Sakkari during the European clay-court swing.
Not that they are taking any joy from Barty’s retirement.
So surprised was Swiatek by the news that she broke down in tears in her Miami hotel room.
“I was crying for a long time,” Swiatek said.
“There was lot of confusion, for sure, but also sadness. When I think of the player that is really complete, I always thought of Ash and looked up to her. I still do. It would be really nice to compete against her for the next few years and actually try to beat her slice. We’re going to miss her, for sure.”
In a video posted on her social media on Wednesday, Barty said she had nothing more to give on the tennis court.
“Thank you to everyone who has supported me along the way, I’ll always be grateful for the lifelong memories we created together.
“I know that, I am spent, physically, I don’t have anything more to give.
“I have given everything I can to this beautiful sport … and I’m really happy with that. For me, that is my success.
“I don’t have that in me anymore, I don’t have the physical drive, the emotional want.”
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