Barty’s precious mettle
There’s no easy path to glory for Ash
IN Tokyo, all roads lead to Osaka for Ash Barty who, despite receiving a treacherous draw, looked in peak condition as she seeks to add a historic Olympic gold to her growing trophy collection.
Barty, still riding a high after her Wimbledon triumph, will have to do it the hard way after Thursday’s draw threw up plenty of hurdles en route to a potential final with local favourite, and the fiercest chal(Covid) lenger for Barty’s world No.1 crown, Naomi Osaka.
Her first challenge: Spanish world No.48 Sara Sorribes Tormo, who will come up against Barty in ominous form.
She sweated it out for an hour on Centre Court on Thursday during an intense session as she blew out whatever cobwebs might have built up during her Wimbledon celebrations.
Barty cannot face Osaka until the gold medal match but things could get tricky, fast, with Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova lying in wait in the third round, a potential quarter-final reunion with 11th seed Barbora Krejcikova, who Barty beat in the fourth round at Wimbledon.
After that? The possibility of either Garbine Muguruza or world No.3 Arnya Sabalenka
in a blockbuster semi-final.
Osaka, meanwhile, will have a much more palatable run to the final – with her first real test not coming until the quarter-finals, where she could meet Poland’s Iga Swiatek.
“Having Ash in the team is fantastic,” said five-time Olympian Sam Stosur, who faces Khazakstan’s Elena Rybakina.
John Millman shapes as the best men’s hope after the withdrawals of Alex de Minaur and Nick Kyrgios, and faces a tough assignment with Italian young gun Lorenzo Musetti in the first round – and a potential third-round with Novak Djokovic on the horizon.
Fresh from her own Wimbledon success story, in which she fell to Barty in the quarterfinals, Aussie No.2 Ajla Tomljanovic will open with Khazakstan’s Yaroslava Shvedova – before a potential second-round showdown with fourth seed Elina Svitolina of the Ukraine.