Australian tennis icon Ash Barty has returned to the court at the All England Club but there’s no sign of a comeback to the pro circuit.
Three years since winning the Wimbledon singles title, Barty was on Centre Court on Thursday (AEST) with fellow Aussie Casey Dellacqua for an invitational doubles match.
The Aussie duo defeated German Andrea Petkovic and Slovak Magdalena Rybarikova 5-7 6-3 [10-7] and will now play Roberta Vinci and Zheng Jie.
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Ash Barty and Casey Dellacqua at the All England Club. Getty
Barty described the occasion as “pretty special”.
“Obviously this is the place that holds some of my most cherished memories,” she said.
“And (it’s) really nice to be back with my best mate on the court. It’s pretty special.”
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“It was amazing … a lovely surprise to be able to go out on Centre Court. I thought I’d played my last match out there.”
Since retiring from tennis in 2022, Barty has been constantly asked about whether she’ll make a fulltime comeback.
On Stan Sport’s Grand Slam Daily this week, Kim Clijsters speculated on what Barty’s invitational return might lead to
“There is definitely a part of me that hopes she gets triggered by the challenge,” the Belgian great said.
However, the Aussie champion put to bed any rumours after her doubles match.
“You guys are killing me. Anyone have a thesaurus for a word that I can use for ‘no’? No, mate. No, I’m not,” Barty said.