Australian Open: Ash Barty smashes her way into history books

Like a shower of soaking rain, Ash Barty has ended a dry spell for Australian tennis fans that had stretched back 15 years at Melbourne Park.

Ash Barty celebrates her victory over Petra Kvitova at Melbourne Park on Tuesday. Picture: Michael Klein

Like a shower of soaking rain, Ash Barty has ended a dry spell for Australian tennis fans that had stretched back 15 years at ­Melbourne Park.

Not since 2005, when Lleyton Hewitt made the final at the Australian Open, has an Aussie gone this far in the tournament.

You have to go back another 21 years — before Melbourne Park was even built to host the Australian Open — to find the last time an Australian woman, Wendy Turnbull, reached the semi-finals of her home grand slam.

Now Barty is only two matches away from breaking the longest drought of all — the 42 years since the last Australian, Chris O’Neil, went all the way to win the title. And her likely challengers are ­falling away.

Barty was brilliant on Tuesday against dual Wimbledon cham­pion Petra Kvitova when successful 7-6 (8-6) 6-2. The Czech star defeated the Queenslander at the same stage of the tournament in Melbourne last year but Barty, with a French Open title to her name, is a vastly more experienced player now.

“I feel like I’m a different person. I’m growing as a person every single day, I’m growing as a tennis player,” Barty said.

“This is a new experience for me. I’m just going to try and take it in my stride, learn as much as I can and go from there.”

Turnbull, who reached the final in 1980, arrives in Melbourne on Wednesday and will watch the Australian’s semi-final against Sofia Kenin. It will be a challenge. The 21-year-old 16th seed ­defeated Barty in Cincinnati in August and also took a set off her during her run to the French Open title. The other side of the draw is relatively open, with only one player from the top 20, fourth seed Simona Halep, still standing.

Former Australian great Wendy Turnbull in the 1980s.

For now, the Young Australian of the Year is pleased she is able to “bring a smile to a few faces around our country and around the world” as she prepares for her biggest match on home soil. The key, she said, was to continue having fun and enjoying the experience.

Barty is the face of the Australian Open. When asked if she was used to seeing her image on billboards around Melbourne, she lamented that her mates now had plenty of material to poke fun at her. “When I do see myself, I kind of laugh a little bit, because I feel pretty goofy doing them … My team do a good job at taking the piss a little bit, sending me some of the photos. Look, you just have to have fun with it. That’s the only way,” she said.