Adelaide Open: Barty starts 2022 season with win over Gauff
Top-ranked Ashleigh Barty started her 2022 season with a win over American prodigy Coco Gauff. Barty came from a set down to defeat Gauff 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 on Wednesday in the second round of Adelaide Open. She was given a bye in the first round. Barty had a shaky start as she dropped serve twice in the first set to go down 4-6.
Why does it matter?
After losing the first set, Barty made a strong comeback, winning 11 of the last 13 games to defeat Gauff. Barty will enter the Australian Open as the top seed. She is aiming to become the first Australian to win the first Grand Slam of the year since Chris O'Neil in 1978. Barty's best performance in AO came in 2020 when she reached semis.
How did the match pan out?
Barty smashed four aces, two fewer than her American opponent. She made two double faults as compared to one made by the 17-year-old. However, Barty won more points than Gauff while serving as well as on returning serves. She collected 59.5% points from serving while Gauff managed just 55.7%. She (44.3%) won three per cent more points than Gauff (40.5%) on returning serves.
Sabalenka and Sakkari knocked out
Second-ranked Aryna Sabalenka and third-seeded Maria Sakkari have been knocked out from the round of 16 of the Adelaide Open. While Sabalenka was beaten by No. 100-ranked Kaja Juvan in straight sets 7-6 (6), 6-1, Sakkari lost to Shelby Rogers 7-6 (5), 2-6, 6-4. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina defeated Czech Republic's Marie Bouzkova 6-3, 6-4 in the second round of the Adelaide Open.
Ash Barty's career highlights
Ash Barty has won two Grand Slams in her career so far. She won her first Grand Slam in the form of Roland Garros in 2019. She is the reigning Wimbledon champion. She won five titles in 2021 - Yarra Valley Classic, Miami, Stuttgart, Wimbledon, and Cincinnati. Overall, she has won 13 WTA titles in her career and has finished runner up six times.
