The morning after winning a third grand slam title,the new Australian Open champion was still having trouble getting her head around her idol’s surprise appearance. She admitted it was the moment of the night.
“The surprise of Evonne arriving[was the moment],” she said of her drought-breaking Australian Open win,becoming the first Australian in 44 years to win the home grand slam.
“I had spoken to her earlier in the week and knew that she wasn’t going to be coming to this tournament and to have her surprise me and hand me a beautiful trophy is a moment I will never forget.
“When I was able to see Casey[Dellacqua] and give her a hug was a moment I will never forget either,to see my best mate on court and to be able to give her a hug and share it.”
Barty said she spent the night quietly,having a few beers with her team and getting to bed at a reasonable hour. Certainly,on Sunday morning in the Carlton Gardens she looked fresh and as if she could play another final.
One of the images of the Australian Open,and an instantly iconic Australian sporting image,was the photograph taken after the final of Barty standing with Goolagong Cawley and Catherine Freeman – three proud women,three proud Australian First Nations women who had each conquered world sport.
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Barty humbly said that she still did not belong in their exalted company,notwithstanding the fact she had just won a third grand slam on a third different surface and in so doing had become,after Serena Williams,the only active female player on the current tour to win a grand slam on each of the three surfaces.
“I am certainly not at their level. Cathy and Evonne are exceptional people,exceptional athletes,and they have paved the path for so many of us. I am still in the category of trying to follow in their footsteps and be the best that I can,but to be a really small part of a legacy that they have created is really cool and I am just trying to create my own pathway and guideline of what they have done for us and our culture and heritage. They are two absolute superstars.”
Barty revealed that Freeman had been a strong mentor for her in recent years as she struggled to the top.
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“Cathy’s incredible. I remember it was only a couple years ago after a semi-final loss I was on the phone to Cathy in tears and just chatting to her about her experiences. Obviously,we share a mentor,[mind coach] Ben Crowe,who’s been phenomenal for both of us but to be able to have her there to enjoy me playing my sport and my craft,I wish I could have been there to watch her do her
thing and I think just being able to share that with her was really special,” she said.
The Australian Open win was no more special than her French Open and Wimbledon victories,Barty said,but it certainly felt different to the other two.
“They are all really different,all really different stages of my career,all really different feelings and to be able to do it at home here is special and I think it is a different feeling to the others without a doubt. I am just so lucky I have been able to experience it multiple times.″