Retired tennis great Ash Barty will return to play at Wimbledon

Retired superstar Ash Barty will be reuniting with the grass courts at Wimbledon for the first time since her epic triumph* in 2021 after agreeing to take part in an invitational* doubles match.

It will be the first time the three-time grand slam champion* takes to the courts since announcing her shock retirement in March 2022.

Barty, who since her retirement has got married and become a mother, will play in the exhibition match* on Tuesday, July 9.

The event will include women’s doubles, men’s doubles and mixed doubles. Wimbledon officials made the announcement on social media, declaring they were “delighted” to have the 28-year-old back.

“Reunited with the Wimbledon grass,” Wimbledon announced. “Delighted to have our 2021 singles champion Ash Barty returning for this year’s Invitational Doubles.”

Since her retirement, she has been reluctant* to pick up a racquet competitively and has repeatedly said that despite retiring at such a young age, she had no intention of a full-time return.

In 2021, Barty ended Australia’s 41-year drought* at Wimbledon, becoming the first player since her idol*, Evonne Goolagong Cawley, to lift the singles trophy.

Barty had previously won the French Open in 2019 – the first Australian woman in 46 years to do so – before claiming the Australian Open in 2022 and announcing her retirement two months later as the reigning world No.1. Since her retirement, Australian female presence at the grand slams has been minimal though Ajla Tomljanovic, who has won her way through to the quarter-finals at the grass court event in Birmingham in the UK, should be able to enter the tournament, with a host of others set to enter qualifying.

“I miss seeing the girls that I’ve built such a relationship with over so many years, but a lot of my best mates have also retired now and they’re kind of moving on to their next chapters,” said Barty.

“We’ll still get out there and hit occasionally if anyone asks or any of my mates ask. But no, I’m enjoying what I’m doing now.”

Barty’s retirement has left something of a hole in Australian women’s tennis with only Daria Saville ranked inside the top 100*, at 85.

GLOSSARY

• triumph: a great victory or achievement
• invitational: an event that participants are invited to, rather than having to qualify
• exhibition match: a non-competitive match played for entertainment
• Grand slam champion: a player who has won one of the four major tennis tournaments (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open)
• reluctant: unwilling or hesitant
• drought: a long period of time with no success or achievement in a particular field
• idol: a person who is greatly admired or loved
• top 100: referring to players who are among the best 100 in the world

EXTRA READING

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Australia’s richest female athletes revealed

Barty: I want to inspire kids to chase their dreams

QUICK QUIZ

1. When did Ash Barty announce her retirement from professional tennis?
2. What significant event is Ash Barty participating in at Wimbledon, and on what date?
3. How many grand slam titles has Ash Barty won, and which tournaments did she win?
4. What has Barty been focusing on since her retirement from tennis?
5. Which Australian female tennis player is currently ranked inside the top 100, and what is her ranking?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Enticing kids to tennis
The news story tells us that “Barty’s retirement has left something of a hole in Australian women’s tennis”. In order to fill this hole, we need to entice young players to take up tennis. Write a speech that you could give at school, explaining why tennis is a great sport for children to play.

Time: allow 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English; Health and Physical Education

2. Extension
Create an athlete profile poster about Ash Barty. Include her statistics and greatest successes, as well as some details about her non-tennis sporting achievements.

Time: allow 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

VCOP ACTIVITY
Opener up-level it
Make a list of all the openers in the article. Pick three that repeat and see if you can replace them with another word, or shuffle the order of the sentence to bring a new opener to the front.

Don’t forget to re-read the sentence to make sure it still makes sense, and that it actually sounds better.