The year 2022 has seen many big names bid adieu to the sport of tennis. Earlier this year, Australian tennis star Ashleigh Barty shocked the entire tennis fraternity with her decision to call it quits after lifting the Australian Open title. Further, the local hero, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, bid an emotional goodbye at the French Open. Recently, Serena Williams, too, announced that this month’s US Open will be the last tournament of her professional career.

During their prime days, Serena and Barty squared off against each other on multiple occasions. As Serena nears retirement, Barty reminisced about her battles against the 23-time Grand Slam champion.

Ashleigh Barty feels fortunate to have played against Serena Williams

During an interview, the Australian star opened up about her matches against the younger Williams sister. She said, “The first [time] I was a very young girl who was intimidated. The second time I thought I had a chance and I did.”

Further, she added, “But the way that she plays and her greatness was too good for me. I would have loved to have challenged myself one last time. That’s my competitive spirit, and me learning from the experiences that I had.”

READ MORE: Russian Tennis Federation President Was Once Slammed for His ‘Bullying’ Comments on Venus and Serena Williams: ‘Very Insensitive and Extremely Sexist’

Feeling fortunate for getting a chance to play against Serena, Barty said, “Not many people on this planet get to say that they played Serena and I’m one of those few people that really got to experience her when she was at her best. And I think that was really exciting. It’s a memory and an experience that I’ll never forget and learnt a lot from.”

Barty vs Serena

During their career, the two faced off against each other thrice. While Serena prevailed on two occasions, their latest meeting at Melbourne 500 Yarra Valley in 2021 resulted in a walkover for the Australian star.

Watch this story: Martina Navratilova’s epic appearance on dancing with the stars

They first squared off against each other at the 2014 Australian Open, where Serena defeated Barty in straight sets. Further, they met again in 2018 at the French Open. However, this time around, Serena had to dig deep for her victory, defeating Barty in three sets.