Ash Barty’s quest to join Wimbledon greats is over

Ash Barty’s quest for French Open-Wimbledon double ends in stunning circumstances.

World No 1 Ash Barty struggles to reach a forehand in her shock round of 16 loss to American Alison Riske at Wimbledon. Picture: AP

Australian Ash Barty’s quest to join legendary women Serena Williams and Steffi Graf by completing the French Open-Wimbledon double has ended in stunning circumstances.

The world No 1 began her clash against American veteran Alison Riske in remarkable fashion, striking four straight aces.

But once the chalk settled and Riske found her rhythm on court and voice when striking the ball, the Roland Garros champion found herself in a battle that ultimately proved beyond her.

The 23-year-old’s 15-match winning streak came to an end 3-6 6-2 6-3 in 1hr 37min. She departs having produced a career-best performance at Wimbledon but disappointed at falling when favourite to win the title.

Riske has shown a propensity in recent weeks to thrive when challenged and the ease of the opening few games proved a false dawn for Barty.

The gulf in ranking and profile between the pair betrayed just how dangerous an opponent the American is on the surface.

Having lost to Riske on grass not long after returning to tennis in 2016, the Australian would have been wary of her rival’s capabilities, particularly given her recent grass court form.

The world No 55 started off the swing with a success in a $143,000 event in Surbiton, where she defeated 2017 Wimbledon semi-finalist Magdalena Rybarikova in the decider.

A week later she claimed the WTA tournament in the Netherlands, defeating world No 4 Kiki Bertens in the final after dropping the opening set 6-0.

Riske, whose father is a former US Secret Service agent and FBI investigator, was beaten in a tough three-set match in Mallorca, Spain, a couple of days later but had strung together three sound wins to reach the last 16.

On the back of the convincing lead-in, she proved too tough for Donna Vekic, Ivana Jorovic and Belinda Bencic, who are all talented players similar in age to Barty.

Notably, several of those triumphs over the last month have been clinched deep in the third set, which was why she was match-hardened for the Australian.

It suggested Riske was more than capable of holding her nerve and revelled when matches became battles of will.

So an early setback against Barty, despite her lofty standing, proved no discouragement for the tough competitor.

And she was able to work back into the match when drawing errors with some strong returning to bounce to put the fourth round match back on serve.

Only six players in the Open era have claimed a grass court title immediately after winning the French Open and they are among the finest to have played tennis in Williams, Steffi Graf, Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, Justine Henin and Margaret Court. Barty matched those legends.

But only Williams and Graf have managed the Roland Garros and Wimbledon double in the last 31 years, demonstrating just how difficult the task facing the 23-year-old was.

From early in the second set, it became apparent the world No 1 was in for a significant test. She became more tentative as the errors became more frequent, though that was partially due to just how well Riske was performing.

Barty’s serve, so stellar to start the match, deserted her through a second set she dropped 6-2, with the Brisbane resident landing just 40 per cent of her first serves.

But the momentum change was clear as Riske levelled the match 6-2.

And when she broke to lead 5-3 in the decider, she was on the verge of a stunning upset.

Barty said she lost to a better player on the day. While her execution was not as sound against Riske and opportunities went begging, she credited the performance of the 29-year-old American for making it difficult.

“She is very comfortable on the grass court. It complements her came well,” Barty said.

“When her back is against the wall, she plays well typically and she did that again today. Regardless of who she plays next, be it Serena or Carla, she has got a great chance.”

Barty said nothing had changed in regards to being the world No 1 and while she had noted the additional spotlight she said: “I think it has been a really positive couple of months for us.”

Karolina Pliskova has a chance to seize the top ranking from her should she reach the semi-finals but Barty said there was no point worrying about that.

“It is out of my control. I am so proud of myself and my team over the last six to eight weeks,” she said. “We have an incredible month, an incredible run. If that is the case, it won’t change what we do.

“Overall, it has been a hell of a trip. I am disappointed right now and it is a tough pill to swallow ... but this is new ground for me at Wimbledon.”

And despite the defeat, the Australian star said she had given her best to try and win Wimbledon and that it was important not to dwell.

“I have absolutely no regrets. We have planned our days and prepared as best as I can. Today was not my day,” she said.

“I didn’t win a tennis match. It is not the end of the world. It is disappointing right now ... but the sun is going to come up tomorrow.

“The positives of what have been over ... this year has been incredible. Today was not my day. It is not going to define us. It is not going to define me as a person.”