'We learn, we move on': Barty upbeat despite exit

World No.1 Ashleigh Barty knows she was "two points away from winning that in straight sets" but has refused to dwell on a heartbreaking exit from the Australian Open in the semi-finals.

Maintaining a characteristic glass-half-full approach, the 23-year-old said she was beaten by an opponent, rising American Sofia Kenin, who played the big points better, eventually going down in two sets after a hard-fought tussle in scorching heat on Rod Laver Arena.

So close: Ashleigh Barty is out of the Australian Open.Credit: AAP

While the oppressive heat, which hovered towards 40 degrees in Melbourne, had no impact on the Queenslander, Barty nonetheless did say she never felt comfortable in a match where she failed to convert four set points to go down 7-6 (8-6), 7-5 after one hour and 45 minutes.

"I felt like my first plan wasn't working. I couldn't execute the way that I wanted. I tried to go to B and C," said Barty, who was striving to become the first Australian woman to make the Australian Open final since 1980.

"I mean, I'm two points away from winning that in straight sets, which is disappointing. Knowing I had to fight and scrap, I still gave myself a chance to win the match."

The French Open champion is maintaining a positive approach after she wore intense public pressure during this Australian summer.

"Yeah, it's disappointing. But it's been a hell of a summer," Barty said.

"If you would have told me three weeks ago that we would have won a tournament in Adelaide, made the semi-finals of the Australian Open, I'd take that absolutely every single day of the week."

Entering the tournament as the first Australian No.1 since Lleyton Hewitt's halcyon days and this final-four match as the warm favourite, Barty confronted a 21-year-old opponent on the rise.

Kenin, the world No.15, more than showed her worth in the upper echelons of women's tennis with a fighting display.

After the tight 59-minute opening set was decided in a tie-breaker, Kenin rallied beautifully in the second set after Barty had broken in the third game.

The critical juncture came in the 10th game when Barty had two of her four set points but failed to convert both. Instead Kenin fought hard and broke to make it 5-5. Next, the American held to love, then broke Barty again to close out the upset.

The parochial crowd was in disbelief. But Barty was not surprised by Kenin's rapid ascent.

"After this week, she is a top-10 player. She deserves that respect and she deserves the recognition," Barty said. "She's played an exceptional tournament. She's had an exceptional last 12 months.

"You have to give credit where credit is due. She played the bigger points better today."

Barty entered her post-match media conference cradling her newest niece Olivia, aged about 11 weeks. Holding a newborn, she said, simply reminded her about the important things in life.

"Perspective is a beautiful thing. Life is a beautiful thing. She brought a smile to my face as soon as I came off the court. I got to give her a hug. It's all good. It's all good."

Ashleigh Barty holds niece Olivia while speaking to the media after the match.Credit: Getty Images

After a frenetic and eye-catching 12 months since Barty exited last year's Australian Open in the quarter-finals, culminating with her rise to the top of the rankings and major tournament victories at Roland Garros and the WTA Finals, Barty and her team will debrief after her Open experience before resetting for the rest of the 2020 season.

"Like we do at the end of every tournament, the end of every experience: we kind of debrief it, we enjoy it, we celebrate it," she said.

"You don't get these opportunities every single week. We get to enjoy the experiences that we've learned, the experiences that we've had over the last month, then gear up for the next few tournaments."

But reliving the heartache of a near-miss before an expectant Melbourne crowd won't be on the agenda.

"I haven't watched a match that I've played for a long time," Barty said.

"I haven't watched any that I won, I haven't watched any that I lost. We kind of learn from it.

"I've lived through it, I played it, I know what happened.

"We chat about it, we learn, then we move on."