World number one Ash Barty became the first Australian woman to win the Wimbledon singles title for 41 years on Saturday when she defeated Czech Karolina Pliskova in the final.
Ashleigh Barty lifted the season-ending WTA Finals trophy and led Australia to their first Fed Cup final since 1993, while Nadal won his 4th ITF Award for winning two Slams this season.
The Czech was a player transformed after a medical timeout in the second set and rallied to secure a place in her first Grand Slam semi-final, where she will meet the winner of the clash between Americans Jennifer Brady and Jessica Pegula.
Ash Barty's dream of ending her nation's 42-year wait for a homegrown Australian Open champion lay in tatters on Thursday after the world number one crumbled on the big points in a straight-sets semi-final defeat to Sofia Kenin. The 23-year-old Queenslander beat a hasty retreat from Rod Laver Arena after losing her first Melbourne semi-final 7-6(6), 7-5, shaking her head ruefully as she walked down the player's tunnel.
Images from Tuesday, Day 8 of the 2021 Wimbledon Championships, in London.
Images from Day 6 of the 2021 US Open in New York on Saturday.
Images from Monday's action at the Australian Open.
Images from Day 3 of the 2022 Australian Open in Melbourne on Wednesday.
The French Open champion's grounded personality meant she was always going to present a clear contrast to the main Australian men's title hopefuls of recent years but there has been no shortage of compatriots ready to kick up a fuss on her behalf.
World number one Novak Djokovic saw off Canadian Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-4 to win his fifth Paris Masters title on Sunday in a warning to his rivals ahead of the ATP Finals, while Ashleigh Barty finished the season in style by beating defending champion Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-3 to add the WTA Finals title to her end-of-year world number one rank.ing
Venus Williams also went the distance before claiming a 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory over Croatia's Donna Vekic.
Barty is seen as Australia's best hope to end its long wait for a first home-grown women's champion.
Riske created one of the biggest shocks of the tournament with her 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory over French Open champion Barty who was on the sort of run that made losing to a player of the American's lowly 55th ranking appear almost impossible.
'I felt comfortable knowing that I just needed to change a few things, to adjust, to try and bring the match back in my favour'
Reigning champion Ash Barty will not play at the French Open later this month because of health concerns and a lack of preparation, the world number one said.
Unseeded Czech Marketa Vondrousova beat Britain's Johanna Konta 7-5, 7-6(2) to reach the French Open final.
Images from Day 3 of the 2025 Australian Open in Melbourne on Tuesday.
Bencic hopes Open organisers make it fair for players in isolation.
'Now, it's about maintaining for if and when we get an opportunity to play again this year, you can kinda flick that switch and go from there.'
A golden moment for Australian Ashleigh Barty and American CoCo Vandeweghe was tinged with disappointment when tournament officials did not let them speak to the crowd after winning the U.S. Open women's doubles final on Sunday.
World number one Ash Barty was shocked in the first round of the women's singles at the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday. The Australian was beaten by Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-4, 6-3.
Barty said the key to the match was extending rallies on the warm day in Southern Florida.
Eighth seed Barty joins 1969, 1970 and 1973 champion Margaret Court and 1971 winner Evonne Goolagong-Cawley on the list of Australian women who have lifted the trophy here in the professional era.
Images from Day 1 of the Australian Open in Melbourne on Monday.
Naomi Osaka settled her nerves and stepped up her preparations for the Australian Open by beating Alize Cornet 6-2, 6-2 to reach the last 16 of the Gippsland Trophy warm-up tournament in Melbourne on Tuesday.
Barty's best performance for Heat came against Melbourne Stars, scoring a quickfire 39 off 27 balls. She went onto amass 68 runs in seven innings in the tournament before switching her focus back to tennis.
Barty says she hopes to earn a more coveted medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Holder Elina Svitolina will face world number one Ash Barty in the end-of-season WTA Finals showpiece on Sunday after they got past Belinda Bencic and Karolina Pliskova respectively in the semi-finals at Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre.
A ruthless Petra Kvitova trampled on the hopes of the host nation with an emphatic 6-1, 6-4 defeat of Ashleigh Barty to reach her second Australian Open semi-final.
Serena Williams sounded a warning for her fellow Australian Open contenders with a sleek win
Iga Swiatek has been not been at her world-beating best in the months leading up to the U.S. Open but the Pole has both the talent and mentality to lift her game for the final Grand Slam of the year, tennis great Chris Evert said.
Britain's Andy Murray expects some of the top male players to follow women's world number one Ash Barty in skipping next month's US Open in New York due to concerns over the coronavirus pandemic. Australian Barty said on Thursday she is not comfortable travelling to the United States amid the pandemic for the hardcourt Grand Slam, which begins on August 31.
Images from Day 7 of the 2021 Wimbledon at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, in London, on Monday.
Big-serving Isner reaches Montreal second round
Aryna Sabalenka moved one step closer to defending her Wuhan Open crown after dispatching world number one Ash Barty in straight sets with a 7-5 6-4 victory in the semi-final on Friday
Factbox on Australia's Ashleigh Barty, who beat Czech Republic's Marketa Vondrousova 6-1 6-3 in the French Open final on Saturday:
Her next opponent is tennis great and 23-times Grand Slam champion Serena Williams.
French Open champion Barty exited the tournament in the last 16 but regained the number one spot after last year's champion Naomi Osaka was also knocked out at the same stage.
Images from Day 5 of the 2021 French Open, in Paris, on Thursday.
The 16-times Grand Slam champion, who has been slightly ill lately, was kept on his toes before racing to victory to set up a meeting with seventh seed Stefanos Tsitsipas.
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