World number one and local favorite Ashleigh Barty is reaching for her first Grand Slam title on hard courts after finally reaching the final of her “home” Australian Open. In it, she will have to overcome the resistance of the world’s No 30 Danielle Collins, for whom this is the first match for a trophy of the highest level in tennis.
Ashleigh Barty is the first representative of the host country in the final in Melbourne since 1980 and the enthusiasm of her compatriots is completely understandable, with over 20 million people watching each of her matches on the way to the last step. The Australian has not won in Australia since the 1970s, and this further contributes to the high expectations of the former cricket player.
It is also interesting that if she triumphs on Saturday, Ashleigh Barty will become only the second active tennis player after Serena Williams, who won a tournament on three different surfaces.
Ashleigh Barty’s path to the final was quite convincing, as she “played” on the court for only 6 hours and 6 minutes, but some of her critics emphasize that so far she did not face a serious opponent from the top 20. This will not happen in the final, as Danielle Collins is number 30 in the world still, although she officially will debut on the 10th position on Monday.
Amanda Anisimova took seven games from Barty in the “Round of 16” and these are the most games that the Australian lost so far in the tournament, which otherwise already has 10 wins in 10 games since the beginning of the year. She warmed up for the Grand Slam with the 14th title of her career in Adelaide, and the only set she has lost so far is to Cori “Coco” Gauff in her first match of 2022.
In addition to making her debut in the top 10 of the world rankings on Monday, Danielle Collins will try to do so as the newest member of the Slam champions’ family. And this given that the 28-year-old American only in 2019, again in Melbourne, recorded her first victory in the main draw on the biggest stage ever.
Until July 2021, Danielle Collins had not played in a final of any category in the WTA, but since then she can boast two titles in Palermo and San Jose. If she wins at the Australian Open 2022, she would become the fifth lowest-ranked champion in Australian Open history.
The American Danielle Collins may become the first representative of the college sports system in the United States to win a Grand Slam title in almost 40 years. Curiously, Jennifer Brady tried to do the same last year in the final of the Australian Open, but lost to Naomi Osaka.
Ashleigh Barty leads with 3:1 in direct matches against Danielle Collins, as her success is in their first three clashes, but on hard courts, the result is 1:1.