Ash Barty’s road to glory

Ash Barty may have to overcome three former Wimbledon champions and five major winners to claim her first title at the All England Club.

Ashleigh Barty heads into Wimbledon as the No 1 seed. Picture: Getty Images

Ashleigh Barty will potentially have to ovecome three former Wimbledon champions and five major winners to claim her first title at the All England Club.

Barty last night drew China’s world No 43 Zheng Saisai in the first round but from then on her path gets tough, with two-time grand slam winner Svetlana Kuznetsova a potential second round opponent.

The 26th seed, 2017 Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza, awaits in the third round with a huge quarter-final battle against defending Wimbledon champion Angelique Kerber or 23-time major winner Serena Williams to come and a potential semi-final against two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova.

Only seven women in a half-century of professional tennis have claimed the French Open-Wimbledon double. They’re the best of the best: Margaret Court (1970), Evonne Goolagong Cawley (1971), Billie-Jean King (1972), Chris Evert (1974), Martina Navratilova (1982, 1984), Steffi Graf (1988, 1993, 1995, 1996) and Serena Williams (2002, 2015).

Court yesterday claimed Barty’s early matches could be her toughest as the 23-year-old comes down from the clouds of her Roland Garros triumph, and world No 1 ranking.

Court told The Australian from Perth: “Ash hasn’t lost a match since the French, so she is going in confident. Her early rounds will be the ones to watch because the girls she’s playing will have nothing to lose. But she has a game for grass and a great temperament.”

Barty took three days off after winning the tune-up event at Birmingham to rest a right arm that has always frayed around the edges. She hit the practice courts at Aorangi Park for one hour on Thursday and reported nothing untoward. She knocked back an invitation to play Wimbledon mixed doubles with Andy Murray to avoid too strenuous a workload.

“When I have a heavy week, I just have to make sure I’m doing the right things to let it settle and build it back up,” Barty said.

“The French was OK, having the day on, day off helps, not having too much of a spike in a row. But we’ve managed it my whole career. We’ve played with it through pain, and weeks we have to take a step back and manage it properly.”

Barty could steal a couple of lines from Alice in Wonderland. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast! Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here!

Describing wonderland, she said: “It’s unique. There’s no place like it. Every time you walk into the All England Club, I still look around in awe. It’s just incredible.”

Barty would have to extend her winning streak to 19 matches to win Wimbledon in her latest adventure. But this was the one she was eyeing off all along. The one she made sure her parents would be attending. Her coach, Craig Tyzzer, said: “I don’t think because you’re No 1, and you won a slam, you’re going to win every match you play. There’s too many good girls out there and Ash knows that it is not realistic. We’ll do exactly the same process for every match she has to play.

“If she plays her best tennis on the day, she is well capable of ­beating anybody. She is not scared of any of the girls.”

Floating in the draw like Jaws circling Amity Island will be Serena Williams. See her at the Oscars this year? Slayed it. The killer dress. The slicked-back ponytail. The sort of diamond earrings that were Marilyn Monroe’s best friend. She stood on stage at the Dolby Theatre with Black Panther-style confidence and attitude and told the global television audience of more than 30 million: “When we’re young, we all have dreams of what we can accomplish in life,” Williams said. “Having the dream is easy. Making it come true is hard. We see the highs and the lows on the journey to stardom. There’s a rush of fame, the pressure of success and the heartache that comes with sacrificing love for career, or career for love.”

Williams’ presenter’s role on Hollywood’s night of nights was confirmation of her elevation ­beyond the sporting world. She was introducing a clip for A Star Is Born, one of the flicks nominated for best picture — and not, as it turned out, a documentary on Ash Barty — but her words could just as easily have described the complications of her own existence. She’s 38. Is she sacrificing love for career, or career for love?

If Barty is to win Wimbledon, she’ll probably have to beat Williams, the seven-time champion. If Barty is somewhat overcooked after winning the French Open and Birmingham, the 11th-seeded Williams is crazily undercooked. For the sheer (Dolby) theatre of a clash between completely opposite personalities, career accomplishments, ages, life stages, playing styles and temperaments, we’re hoping for a Barty-Williams clash.

It’s become increasingly likely that Court’s all-time record of 24 majors will survive. Surely next year will be Williams’ last on tour, if indeed she lasts that long. She’s semi-retired now, playing a mere 12 matches this year.

She hasn’t won a tournament. She hasn’t played since her loss to Sofia Kenin at the French Open and having a tantrum that led to Dominic Thiem being thrown out of the interview room. No warm-up tournaments for Wimbledon while Barty has done everything by the textbook. Forty-one matches this year. She’s won 36 of them. Three tournament victories. Williams is so infrequently on the WTA Tour that her arrivals are more of a shock than her absences or departures.

John McEnroe said the clock was ticking for Williams. His warning in London came under the newspaper banner of Serena Williams Sent Wimbledon Warning By John McEnroe Over Grand Slam Record. Before every Wimbledon, headlines about Williams are everywhere. Much to the benefit of her rivals. It’s all celebrity-based stuff. Meghan Markle Expected To Attend Wimbledon To Support Serena Williams. Tennis Star Serena Williams To Grace Cover Of Wheaties. Serena Williams To Wear White Dress Featuring Nike Logo Made From 34 Swarovski Crystals.

Meanwhile, Barty has been able to quietly go about her business. Before the Oscars, Williams posted a picture of herself playing tennis. She wrote, “Pre-Oscars beauty routine.” Perhaps that is all the sport has become to her. A quick hit, now and then. But she’s still the dominant figure at Wimbledon. She might look at Barty’s seeding for the wonderland championships and quote the Queen of Hearts: “Off with her head!”

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