Australian superstar and world No.1 Ash Barty named WTA player of the year

Ash Barty has put another honour in her trophy cabinet in a bumper year.

Ash Barty is the WTA player of the year. Picture: Adrian Dennis / AFP
Ash Barty is the WTA player of the year. Picture: Adrian Dennis / AFP

Five tournament victories in 2021, including her second grand slam title, has earned Australia’s world No.1 Ash Barty the WTA Player of the Year award.

It’s the second time Barty has been named the world’s best having also taken the award in 2019.

Barty overcame the rollercoaster of a heavily Covid-affected 2020 season to reassert her dominance on the women’s tour in 2021, ending the year as world No.1.

The Queenslander scored a tour-leading five WTA titles in 2021 and went through the year losing just eight of her 50 singles matches.

Barty lived out a childhood dream by winning Wimbledon, her second grand slam title after her breakthrough French Open win in 2019.

Barty also defended her title at the Miami Open while also winning titles at the Yarra Valley Classic, Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart and the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati.

She also won the Porsche Race to the WTA Finals and secured the year-end world No.1 ranking for the third consecutive year.

Barty hasn’t played since the US Open having opted out of the season-ending finals in Mexico to prepare for her assault on the Australian Open.

Originally published as Australian superstar and world No.1 Ash Barty named WTA player of the year

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