World no.1, Ashleigh Barty cruised through to the quarter-final of the Australian Open today, beating Amanda Anisimova in the fourth round. Barty has been in exceptional form since the beginning of the year, winning two titles in Adelaide. Before this match, the Aussie went on to win 58 straight service games to stay unbeaten in 2022. 

Incidentally, Barty was playing in the Rod Laver Arena with the presence of the Great man, Rod Laver. At the press conference, Barty spoke very highly of Rod Laver and about the love he has for the sport.

Ashleigh Barty says Rod Laver is iconic

In today’s match, 2-time Grand Slam winner, Ash Barty was playing at her highest level against Amanda Anisimova of the USA. The Australian beat Anisimova by 6-4,6-3 to reach her third quarter-finals at the Australian Open. However, Barty lost her incredible service record in today’s match. The streak ended in the second set after 63 consecutive games where Barty didn’t lose her serve.

Despite losing her serve in the second set, Barty won the match in straight sets with the presence of Rod Laver in the arena. Speaking about it, Barty expressed her happiness regarding her win at Rod Laver’s own house (Rod Laver Arena). 

“It’s so nice to have him enjoying his own house, his own court. He was unbeatable. I’m certainly not,” Barty said about Rod Laver. 

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“He’s iconic. And in the same breath, he’s also a down-to-earth Queenslander who just loves his sport,” Barty further stated. 

Barty is ready for the next round

After beating Anisimova in the fourth round, Barty will face another American, Jessica Pegula in the quarter-final of the Australian Open. The last time Barty played Pegula was in the French Open 2019 in the first round, where the Australian won that match easily. Barty also went on to win the French Open in 2019. 

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Meanwhile, Pegula is in fine form, as she beat the no.5 seed Maria Sakkari by 7-6, 6-3 in today’s fourth-round match. It will be interesting to see if she can cause an upset against Barty. If that happens, it will be her biggest career win for sure. However, Barty looks unbeatable at the moment, as she hasn’t dropped a set in this tournament and will definitely look to win her first Australian Open in front of the home crowd. 

Can Barty win the Australian Open? Let us know in the comments.

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