Serena Williams keeping a close eye on Ash Barty at Wimbledon

Serena Williams fears Ash Barty “as a force’’ at Wimbledon as the Australian chases a 16th successive win

Ash Barty plays a forehand against Harriet Dart during their third round match at Wimbledon on Saturday. Picture: Getty images

Serena Williams fears Ash Barty “as a force’’ at Wimbledon as the Australian chases a 16th successive win when she lines up against American Alison Riske tonight.

Williams, playing far stronger than her ranking of 11, could meet Barty as early as tomorrow if both win through the round of 16. She has been watching and dissecting Barty’s game as much as the 23-year-old’s comfortable victories so far have allowed.

Only Barty’s first-round opponent Zheng Saisai has pushed Barty to a 6-4 set. Barty said her 6-1 6-1 dismantling of England’s Harriet Dart was more difficult than it looked and she has had to call upon her lethal slice to control the games.

Despite not dropping a set so far, Barty insisted: “A lot of my matches haven’t been as easy as the scoreline suggests. I think there have been some really tricky moments.’’

The comfortable run into Wimbledon’s second week might become more unsettled as Riske, world ranked 55, has fought through to face Barty in the round of 16 with a succession of three-set wins.

Riske beat Barty 7-6 7-5 at Eastbourne three years ago when she began her return to tennis after a break, including playing some cricket.

“I remember that match vividly. Whenever Alison’s back was against the wall, she produced her best tennis. That’s no secret. You ask any opponent that plays Alison, she’s up for the fight, makes you work for every single point,” Barty said.

“I think it will be really important for me to go out there and try and bring my variety, take my opportunities when I get them. Also I know she loves playing on the grass court. She’s going to make me play a million balls. I have to be at my best.’’

Barty said she was concentrating on her strategy to overcome Riske and wouldn’t look ahead in the draw, but her potential quarter-final opponent Williams has.

Williams found her rhythm against Julia Goerges and her mojo playing alongside Andy Murray in the mixed doubles.

“From the day I played her (Barty) in Australia I had a tremendous amount of respect for her game,” Williams said.

“I just thought she’s just a beautiful player. She has great technique. I love that. I’m really a technical player. I like when people, you know, have a beautiful game and they do the right techniques. It’s so right up my alley.’’

Williams added: “She’s just someone in the locker room that you just always root for. But in general I have been watching her game because I know she’s a force to be reckoned with. Yeah, so I’ve been watching a lot.’’

Williams’s 22-month-old daughter Olympia was in attendance at the back of the press conference room but it has been Barty who has peppered her media answers with oblique references to children’s films.

In what is a coded hello message to her niece Lucy, Barty has dropped in lines from some of the three-year-old’s favourite movies and songs. First it was the The Lion King when Barty spoke of her plan for the first round of Wimbledon: “We kind of came into it thinking like Hakuna Matata.” Then after the second round, Barty said Lucy tells her ‘you can go to infinity and beyond’, a reference to a line in Toy Story. On Saturday Barty turned to Samuel E. Wright’s lyrics from The Little Mermaid track Under the Sea.

“I think for me sometimes I look at a shot, I play a shot, I think the seaweed is always greener in someone else’s lake,’’ she said with the briefest of smiles.

Having such fun with her niece from afar is indicative of how relaxed Barty is feeling and, given her recent run of games lasting under an hour, there is no sign of the bone stress problems with her arm. Barty has not lost since mid-May in Rome, where she was beaten on clay by Kristina Mladenovic.