By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, October 23, 2021
Ash Barty won't be defending her WTA Finals crown in Guadalajara—the world No. 1 has put an end to her 2021 season.
Photo credit: Volvo Car Open Facebook
Ash Barty is saying no to Mexico to focus on Melbourne.
World No. 1 Barty announced she's closed the curtain on her 2021 season and will not defend her WTA Finals championship when the season-ending event debuts in Guadalajara, Mexico next month.
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“I wanted to let everyone know that I won’t be competing in any further tournaments in 2021, including the WTA Finals in Mexico,’’ Barty said in a statement. “It was a difficult decision but I need to prioritize my body and my recovery from our 2021 season and focus on having the strongest pre-season for the Australian summer.
“With the ongoing challenges of travelling back to Queensland and quarantine requirements, I am not willing to compromise my preparation for January."
The Wimbledon winner's withdrawal from the WTA Finals is not a surprise.
Barty pulled out of Indian Wells and her coach, Craig Tyzzer, sent a signal she'd likely miss Guadalajara in an intervew with the AAP last month. Tyzzer said Barty is "physically and mentally exhausted" and needs a break. Australia's Coronavirus safety protocal call for any Aussie returning home to quarrantine for two weeks in a hotel room.
Given Barty's stated goal of capturing her maiden Australian Open title in January, Tyzzer said playing Mexico then facing the two-week quarantine before Melbourne did not make sense.
“It certainly isn't easy for us to get there and to play that event in Mexico and then to come back and have to do two more weeks in quarantine and then your summer is sort of ruined as well," Tyzzer said.
In 2019, Barty dethroned defending champion Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-3 to capture the WTA Finals Shenzhen championship—and a record champion's check of $4.42 million.
This fall, Barty is walking away from another potential substantial payday to focus solely on her preparations for the Australian Open.
“I wish the WTA team and the players all the best for a successful WTA Finals and rest of the year," Barty said. “My focus is now on the Australian summer and doing everything I can to win the Australian Open. I can’t wait to play at home again.”
In addition to the challenging timing of the event, coach Tyzzer questions conditions in Guadalajara.
In an interview with the Australian Associated Press, Tyzzer suggested it's madness to stage the the WTA's crown jewel in challenging conditions. Guadalajara's 5,100-foot elevation means pressureless balls will be used, according to Tyzzer, who questions the logic of asking the world's top eight elite players to play with balls at a lofty elevation they are unaccustomed playing.
"Pressure-less balls absolutely fly. It's a ball that, if you use it in normal conditions, it doesn't bounce. It's not the greatest advertisement for the best girls in the world to be playing something they've never done before,” Tyzzer told the Australian Associated Press. “[To play in] conditions they’ve never played, in a country they don’t play and at altitude, I just feel it’s ridiculous.
“As a spectacle, it’s just frightening.”