WTA: Ashleigh Barty – The almost forgotten returnee

Ashleigh Barty took two years off work after the US Open 2014.Now the 21-year-old from Queensland is attacking the top 30 in the WTA world ranking.

Ashleigh Barty stayed calm.After losing the first set against Agnieszka Radwanska in the last sixteen of the WTA Premier 5 tournament in Wuhan, which she should have won, the 21-year-old Australian had led 3-1 and the experienced Radwanska had pulled her head out of the loop once again.And then says goodbye to change her outfit.Barty used the longer break to have an intensive exchange with her coach Craig Tyzzer.

Barty was assured that everything was fine, but the result was not correct.Well: A good hour later, Barty also got the result right, taking second and third places with 6:0 and 6:4, moving into the last eight of the big event in China.

The history of Ashleigh Barty’s comeback almost threatens to go down a bit, alongside all the returnees such as Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova and Sloane Stephens.The story of a player who, at the age of 18, no longer felt suitable for the WTA tour, returned after just under two years, and will be at least 31st place on Monday, a career high, is one of the most interesting stories of the year.

Just like the Barty playground: the short service movement, from which she gets a maximum of effectiveness; the backhand slice, into which she had to fight against Radwanska in the first place, but which still had some bitterness ahead of Roberta Vinci; and of course Barty’s forehand: Cross or Inside-Out a weapon, only the ball comes along the line (still)

Barty will test Karolina Pliskova in Wuhan in the quarter-finals as a clear outsider.The returnee has already defeated two top ten players in 2017 – in Cincinnati Venus Williams and on Monday in Wuhan Johanna Contacts.By the way, Barty and long-time partner Casey Dellacqua are also among the last eight in doubles, the two Australians have reached their fourth Grand Slam finale in Roland Garros this year, the first after a four-year break.

Against Karolina Pliskova, Barty will be on the court as an outsider on Thursday, even if the internal balance sheet says 1:1.Pliskova plays good tennis in Wuhan, has got rid of two Chinese women.The last performance comparison with Barty was in 2016 in Nottingham on grass, when Pliskova won twice in the tiebreak.

Here the single panel in Wuhan