Stuttgart (Germany) (AFP)
World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty landed her ticket to the final of the WTA tournament in Stuttgart on Saturday, beating No. 4 seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine in three sets 4-6, 7-6 (7/5 ), 6-2.
A nice birthday present for the Australian, born April 24, 1996. However, it took her more than 2 hours to get it, after having conceded the first set.
"It's important to always believe in it. Whatever the score, I'm trying to find the right way" to come back, explained Barty after the match, just before receiving a bouquet of flowers and hearing ringing a "Happy birthday" in the speakers surrounding the court.
"I love tennis and competition, so playing on my birthday makes it all the more special," she added, just before heading to the doubles semi-final with her partner Jennifer Brady opposite to the Vivian Heisen / Wang Yafan pair.
In the singles final, Barty will face either the Romanian Simona Halep (3rd in the world) or the Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka (7th), who face each other in the second semi-final.
The Australian, almost absent from the courts in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, will try Sunday to clinch her third title of the year and her 11th in her career, just over a month from the start of Roland -Garros, where she won her first Grand Slam tournament in 2019.
© 2021 AFP