World No. 1 Ash Barty announced her retirement from professional tennis at the age of 25 – will she turn to cricket?
Ashleigh Barty revealed her decision of retiring from tennis in a recorded video posted on Instagram where she was having a conversation with former doubles partner Casey Dellacqua. The announcement comes as a shock to the tennis community especially when Barty was in her peak and is the reigning Wimbledon and Australian Open Champion.
This is the second time Barty has retired from tennis. On the previous occasion in 2014, she retired and made a switch to cricket, playing for Brisbane Heat in the Women’s Big Bash League. She made a comeback to tennis in 2016 and has had a successful stint to date. Ashleigh Barty stated that she is retiring from tennis to ‘chase other dreams’. She explained that she is ‘absolutely spent both physically and mentally’ and has nothing more to offer to the sport.
Cricket, golf or something else – what’s next for Ash Barty?
On the previous occasion when Barty took retirement from Tennis, she opted for cricket. She was signed by Women’s Big Bash League franchise Brisbane Heat and scored 39 runs off just 27 balls in her very first match. She went on to play nine of the team’s fourteen games that season. Barty also played for Brisbane’s Western Suburbs District Cricket Club and ended up scoring a century for the team in the final that season. Many fans in Australia and in the cricketing world would be hoping Barty picks up the bat once again.
A foray into golf seems equally likely. Barty is an avid golf lover and plays the sport at an amateur level. Barty’s father, Robert was a golfer who represented Australia at an amateur level in the 1980s. As a matter of fact, Barty’s fiance Garry Kissick is a professional golfer and the couple met each other at the Brookwater County Golf Club. Barty loves golf and that makes the sport a very likely career option for her.
“I always used to muck around in the backyard with whatever old golf clubs I could find. Golf has always been a sport that comes quite naturally to me”, Barty had earlier stated in an interview.
Ashleigh Barty might as well choose a completely different career option for the future but whatever she opts for, she surely will have the love and good wishes of her fans all across the world. Ash Barty certainly has our best wishes for her future endeavours.
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