Ash Barty makes ‘emotional’ return to Wimbledon, David Beckham leads stars in royal box
Ash Barty and her husband have wished their son a happy birthday in an adorable photo as the tennis great opened up about playing at Wimbledon again.
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Australian tennis great Ash Barty and her husband Garry Kissick have wished their son Hayden a happy first birthday in an adorable picture on Instagram.
The photo of the happy family was captioned, “Cake for breakfast.”
It comes as Barty told of her excitement over returning to play at Wimbledon for the first time since winning the title in 2021.
The 28-year-old Queenslander, who shocked the sports world when she retired in 2022, will also return to Wimbledon as a commentator before she joins the Invitational Doubles draw with close friend and former doubles partner Casey Dellacqua.
The mother of one said it was a “strange feeling” walking through Wimbledon’s gates.
“It wasn’t memories that came up — the forehands or backhands or serves or the match point, it was the emotions that came with that moment,” she told 7NEWS.
Barty said the oppoprtunity to play at Wimbledon with her “best mate” Dellacqua was too good to turn down.
For now though, she is focused on being a mum to toddler Hayden and has no plans to return to the court permanently.
“I’ve obviously been very busy with the next chapter of my life and have been loving every minute... but I’m excited to spend a bit of time on the court to try and just have some fun,” she said.
“So a bit rusty coming in but looking forward to it.”
It came as the world’s stars flocked to centre court to catch the action of day one at the iconic tennis tournament.
Soccer legend David Beckham continued his sweet tradition of bringing his mother, Sandra, to the event and the pair watched on from the royal box.
The star footballer was seen chatting to English singer Jamie Cullum who also enjoyed one of the 74 elite seats that are invitation only.
The Royal Box has been used for VIP guests of Wimbledon since 1922 and has seen British and overseas Royal Families attend over the years.
Also in attendance was famous Welsh singer Katherine Jenkins who watched with her husband Andrew Levitas.
Other stars watching the tennis included pop star Pixie Lott, music icon Sir Cliff Richard, pop sensation James Blunt and a number of actors from some of TV’s biggest shows, including hit series Bridgerton, which was represented by stars Golda Rosheuvel and Martins Imhangbe.
Sir David Attenborough, 98, was also spotted watching the Men’s Singles tennis match from the Royal Box.
The environmentalist and broadcasting legend, decked out in a suit and tie, was seen laughing and smiling at spectators as he took his seat.
As The Sun reports, Attenborough was instrumental in changing the colour of tennis balls from white to bright yellow.
Attenborough worked as a controller for BBC Two in 1967 and it was up to him to transition viewers to colour from black and white.
The legendary presenter quickly realised that it was hard to notice the white ball when it travelled over white lines and suggested tennis chiefs switch to the fluorescent yellow colour.
The International Tennis Federation approved what is now known as the “optic yellow” ball in 1972.
It took Wimbledon another 14 years before they made the switch for the 1986 Championships.
Monday’s opening match was Carlos Alcaraz vs. Mark Lajal, which was followed by Emma Raducanu vs. Reneta Zarazua afterwards.
Other famous or familiar faces spotted courtside included Sir Richard Branson, Sofia Wellesley and Kirsty Gallacher, Poppy Delevingne and Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece and Denmark and Made in Chelsea star Lucy Watson.
While the Princess of Wales has been a regular at past Wimbledons and royal watchers are wondering if Kate will make an appearance at the tennis tournament this year, Kensington Palace has not confirmed this.
Princess Catherine, 42, has been largely out of the public eye since undergoing major abdominal surgery in January, and then preventive chemotherapy following a cancer diagnosis.
Kensington Palace has not confirmed whether the Princess will be attending Wimbledon but
The Princess of Wales shared an update about her health in June, saying that she is “making good progress” but “there are good days and bad days”.
She shared that she hopes to “join a few public engagements over the summer”, while “equally knowing I am not out of the woods yet”.
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