There are feats that only absolute champions, the real ones, can accomplish. Businesses that only those who are hungry, those who are able to throw their hearts (and sometimes even a few more organs) over the obstacle can reach.
This is the case of Rafael Nadal, capable of winning a slam, Roland Garros, playing with a practically anesthetized foot. Or Novak Djokovic, who won the Australian Open 2021 with an abdominal tear of 1.7 cm. But now, to the two legends, we must also add another multiple slam champion: Ashleigh Barty.
The Australian tennis player, who shocked the entire WTA circuit with her retirement from tennis earlier this year at just 26, told Australian sports website Code Sports that she won Wimbledon by playing the entire tournament with a 10cm abdominal tear.
The former number one in fact, after the decision to hang up the racket, had revealed that winning the slam was her dream since she was a child and winning the title in 2021 had been a sort of gratification for her, a goal achieved that satisfied her.
In a long story, Barty brought to light all the anecdotes related to her victory at Wimbledon, examining every single moment, every game, every emotion of that triumphant British campaign.
Ashleigh Barty: “I won Wimbledon with an abdominal tear”
The former world number one, undisputed ruler of the WTA circuit before her retirement, announced her decision to bid farewell to tennis on March 23, 2022, a few weeks after winning the home slam, becoming the first Australian tennis player to win the Australian Open since 1978.
The start of the year was Barty’s 15th WTA career title, the third major after the 2019 French Open and the aforementioned Wimbledon Grass Championships in 2021. His retirement paved the way for Iga Swiatek’s triumphal march.
, a sort of handover that saw the Polish tennis player monopolize the women’s circuit, winning 6 tournaments in a row (including Roland Garros and 4 WTA 1000) and making a streak of 35 consecutive victories still active.
The curiosity therefore remains as to how exciting the rivalry between the two tennis players would have been, given that Barty was one of the three players capable of beating Swiatek in 2022.
