Ash Barty’s troubling revelation sparks French Open concerns

Ash Barty survived a huge scare in Paris but her troubles may only get worse from here after a troubling admission after round one.

Ash Barty faced an unexpected problem in round one.

Ash Barty isn’t going to use injuries as an excuse but revealed she suffered an “acute episode” when elaborating on what’s going on with her body at the French Open.

The Aussie tennis star survived a scare in the first round, dropping the second set before recovering in the third to beat Bernarda Pera 6-4 3-6 6-2. She’s got fond memories of Roland Garros, having won her maiden grand slam title there in 2019, but staying fully fit may prove challenging.

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Barty took to the court with heavy strapping around her upper-left leg to provide support for a hip injury and called for treatment from the trainer in the changeover between the second and third sets.

Aussie tennis great Rennae Stubbs hit out at some viewers on social media who suggested Barty was faking an injury to stall Pera’s momentum, and after the match the world No. 1 said she suffered a “flare-up through my left hip”.

Worryingly, Barty said she felt fine heading into the year’s second major before being rocked by the sudden pain.

“It was an acute episode, I suppose we’ll call it, over the weekend. Actually, I was feeling great (beforehand),” Barty said.

“We’ve crossed every T and dotted every I. We’ve done imaging, we’ve done everything that we can to get myself to a point where I can play.

“It’s just one of those things. It’s not perfect timing, but there never is a perfect time.

“I just have been working with my team as best that I can and trusting them.

“They know my body back to front, inside and out, and I know I have full trust in them. We’re here, we’re fighting, we’re in with a chance and that’s all we can do.”

Barty fought through the pain barrier (Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty Images).

Barty also played the Australian Open with her thigh heavily strapped earlier this year, but mystery surrounded the specifics of her ailment at the time.

The 25-year-old retired from a French Open lead-up event in Rome with an arm injury, but isn’t making a huge deal of her latest setback.

“A massive part of today was accepting the fact that, yes, I may not be absolutely 100 per cent but I’m certainly good enough to go out there and fight and do the best I can and give myself a chance to win matches,” she said.

“I’m not going to hide behind the fact I’m not quite 100 per cent — but I can guarantee I’ll go out there with the right attitude every day and give it a crack no matter what.”

Barty skipped the defence of her French Open title in 2020 due to the pandemic but has been in rich form this year. She’s won trophies at the Yarra Valley Classic, Miami and on clay in Stuttgart in the run-up to Roland Garros.