Ash Barty serves nation’s dreams – and her own

Ash Barty, the most quintessentially Australian of Australians, plays the final of the Australian Open against American Danielle Collins on Saturday night. She loves this country as much as any athlete ever has.

Ash Barty during a practice session at Melbourne Park on Friday ahead of her appearance in the women’s final against American Danielle Collins. Picture: Michael Klein

Ash Barty knows what it means. “I do,” she says.

The most quintessentially Australian of Australians plays the final of the Australian Open against American Danielle Collins on Saturday night. She loves this country as much as any athlete ever has.

She warms up by playing corridor cricket or kicking a Sherrin. She’s spent more time watching the women’s Ashes on TV than footage of her opposition in recent days. She takes the piss out of her English physical trainer. Her drink of choice after winning her semi-final? A choccy milk. When Covid wiped out the tour a couple of years ago, she went and had a beer at the footy.

“I’m a sports nut,” she says.

She knows what it would mean for Australia to have its first Open champion since Chris O’Neil in 1978. What it would mean to the rest of us sports nuts in the stands, at home, in the pubs. She knows her audience will be in the millions. She’s a massive fan of those cricketers wearing baggy green caps in Canberra this weekend but come 7.30pm (AEDT) on Saturday, they’ll be massive fans of hers.

That final is not just in her country, it’s for her country. We just have to understand something about her. She can only do so much. “I can’t do any more than I can try … If it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. I just have to hope that everyone understands that I’m giving it my best crack.”

Nothing has changed in that regard. On day one of a tournament that started like a disaster before finishing like a dream, Barty said: “It doesn’t always work out exactly how you want to. But … you do the right things and try and give yourself the best chance and that’s all you can do.”

Barty has poured joy into Melbourne Park. It was a bit of a miserable old joint on the first Monday of matches. The Novak Djokovic fiasco sucked the life out of us. Day by day, match by match, Barty has turned it around.

It’s hard to remember an atmosphere as truly happy as the one that filled Rod Laver Arena when she won her semi-final with the most beautiful tennis you could ever wish to see. “Let’s do it,” she grins about going all the way.

This hasn’t been a tennis tournament. It’s been a blubberfest. Dylan Alcott has made Barty cry. Barty’s made Alcott cry. Alcott’s Australian of the Year award has filled Barty with pride as well as tears. They get along well. Alcott has a way of talking nicely then just spitting out the raw truth. On Barty, he says: “What I’m most proud of is how much of a beautiful person she is. You could not pick a better ambassador for Australian tennis than her. I’m so lucky to call her a mate and, oh god, I love watching her kick arse.”

Tennis legend Rod Laver likens the love for Barty as that shown to Olympic champion Cathy Freeman.

“She’s someone for us to be proud of as Australians. She’s a person to be admired,” Laver says.

Barty knows this will be a win for the people. Life has been hard yakka for a couple of years now. She knows exactly what it means. “I do,” she says again.