What is it - exactly - that makes the world No. 1 Ash Barty so special? | KonradMarshall
You've probably seen the moment already but look below. View it again. The return of serve went wide, and all of Australia beamed, and of course Ash Barty did too, before smashing the ball skyward. She had done it. Won her 12th straight match. Won the Birmingham Classic. Achieved the No. 1 ranking in the world.
It starts with her kick serve. Also known as "the hopper", the idea is to get the ball to bounce up and out of an opponent's hitting zone . "Most players like to get the ball at hip height but when you do a kick serve you're basically putting more rotations on the ball, so it jumps quickly off the court and often changes direction," says Tyzzer. "Not a lot of girls hit kick serves, so it's a definite point of difference.
Next, there's her forehand. No one succeeds in tennis without power across the body and Barty's right is a definite weapon. She generates heavy topspin, and the ball moves with good pace through the court. She also doesn't stand back like so many others, hitting only ropey, hydraulic forehands from the baseline. "Ash adapts to who she's playing and moves the ball around – pinpointing her shots," says Tyzzer. "It's won her lots of her matches.
Volleys are of course another potent weapon in the Barty arsenal. The thing is, she's a strong and constant doubles player, which pays off in singles because of her willingness to come to the net. She has soft hands and quick reflexes, honed over a long time. "She comes in at any opportunity for a short ball," says Tyzzer. "And it's a real point of difference in all forms of tennis, because not many guys do it either.
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