Ashleigh Barty has been recognized for her strong season on the tour by winning the Newcombe Medal at the Australian Tennis Awards.
The 21-year-old was selected for the honors ahead of fellow finalists Nick Kyrgios and Daria Gavrilova. Barty, who took a break for the sport before returning in 2016, has risen over 200 places in the WTA rankings in 2017. From 271st to a current ranking best of 17th. In March she won her first tour title at the Malaysian Open, defeating Nao Hibino in the final. Following on from that, she was also runner-up at premier events in Birmingham and Wuhan.
During the award ceremony on Monday, Barty paid tribute to her coach Craig Tyzzer. Who has been credited for helping her rediscover her love for the game since returning.
“Starting with the boss, ‘Tyzze’, what we’ve been able to achieve this year is pretty amazing,” she said.
“Starting from zero last year and 18 months later we’re here. We made it, we sort of did it.
“It’s been a really special year.”
Named after seven-time grand slam champion John Newcombe, the Newcombe medal is presented annually to the ‘most outstanding’ player in Australian tennis. Previous recipients include Lleyton Hewitt, Sam Stosur and Kyrgios.
Barty’s honor has been hailed by her rivals. Gavrilova, who has defeated two top 10 players this year, has praised her achievements. Barty was a former world No.2 junior player before taking a 18-month hiatus from the sport. During her time away, she played for women’s cricket team Brisbane Heat in the WBBL.
“She’s had a great year, really proud of her,” Gavrilova told AAP news on Thursday.
“I knew she was playing good from the beginning of the year when we were playing Fed Cup.
“Just playing some practice sets … I was like ‘she’s playing really good; she’s going to do some damage’ but, obviously, I did not expect her to end up being the No. 1 Aussie.
“Sam (Stosur), myself and Ash, we’re all really competitive and it’s good to just push each other.”
Tribute to Dellacqua
Another person Barty has credited for her resurgence is doubles partner Casey Dellacqua. Together the duo has featured in six WTA finals this season, winning a total of three titles. In the grand slams they reached the quarterfinals or better at three out of the four majors. Settling for runner-up at the French Open.
“She’s my best mate but I don’t think she quite understands how much of a massive impact she’s had on my on life,” Barty said of Dellacqua.
“Bringing me back into the sport to be honest, she started the ball rolling again to finish unfinished business in doubles.
“Case is my best friend, my mum on tour, my shoulder to cry on through many times and she helped me through my darkest days.”
Barty closes her season inside the world’s top 20 in both the singles and doubles.
