Tennis: a “magical” individualist hangs up her racket
For quite a while now, the sport of tennis has been bracing itself for some “big farewells”, said Christopher Clarey in The New York Times. Roger Federer and Serena Williams are both 40; the injury-prone Rafael Nadal is 35; Andy Murray (34) has a metal hip. Had any of these “ageing and ailing superstars” retired, no one would have been that surprised. What few predicted, however, was that a brilliant player who seemed to be “just getting started” would be announcing that she was permanently hanging up her racket. But that’s what the world No. 1 – 25-year-old Ashleigh Barty – did last week. The reigning Wimbledon and Australian Open champion said she’d decided to quit the sport in order to “chase other dreams”. With her “beautiful game and winning personality”, Barty might have dominated tennis for many more years. Hence to many, her decision seems eccentric – and to some, rather nonsensical.
Yet anyone who has followed this “incredible and unorthodox” player won’t have been especially shocked, said Molly McElwee in The Daily Telegraph. From a young age, Barty has operated “completely to the beat of her own drum”. As a 12-year-old, she avoided organised competition and instead honed her “varied and fluid game” by practising against grown men. Aged 18, citing burnout and depression, she took an 18-month break from tennis and spent a season playing professional cricket in Australia’s Big Bash League. Her coach at the time, Andy Richards, described her as a “freak” for excelling at a sport she’d barely played before. Naturally, some “ageing hacks and tragic souls” have already berated Barty for “showing insufficient mettle”, said Matthew Syed in The Times. But why should sporting careers conform to a single template, one which prioritises winning at all costs? Instead, we should express our gratitude for all that this “idiosyncratic, brilliant athlete” has achieved.
Nonetheless, her departure represents a “huge blow to tennis in general and the women’s game in particular”, said Mike Dickson in the Daily Mail. With her cultured, subtle game – one that regularly bamboozled more one-dimensional opponents – she was a genuine treat to watch. Particularly “magical” was her slice backhand
– a shot that’s becoming a rarity in the women’s game. Her retirement also shows up a “curious generational schism” that’s emerging within tennis, said Oliver Brown in The Daily Telegraph. While “ageless wonders” such as Williams and Federer do all they can to resist the “attenuation of their powers”, a crop of younger players “prize emotional well-being above the remorseless hamster-wheel of international tennis”. Naomi Osaka, 18 months Barty’s junior, has taken time away to prioritise her mental health; so too, on the men’s side, has the extravagantly talented Nick Kyrgios. For this generation of players there’s increasingly only one winner in the “balancing act between sporting longevity and all-round peace of mind”.