Never say never: Ash Barty's surprising new career move
Ash Barty is set for a return to Wimbledon this year, but not in the way you'd expect.
The Aussie legend who retired from competitive tennis in 2022 at the age of 25, has been persistent about not returning to the court.
Since her retirement, she married her long-term partner Garry Kissick, and the pair welcomed their son Hayden in July 2023. She has also written some books and played a few golf tournaments around the world.
In November 2022, when promoting her memoir My Dream Time, Barty was asked if she’d ever consider a move into the commentary box, to which she replied: “No, never.”
But now, she is making her return into the spotlight, particularly the commentary box as she has been announced as part of the BBC’s team for Wimbledon.
“A host of Wimbledon champions will be joining the studio," BBC’s content boss Charlotte Moore said.
Barty will be joining Nick Kyrgios and former Aussie Wimbledon champ Pat Cash for the Summer of Sport event in London.
“This will include John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King and Pat Cash, alongside Tim Henman, Tracey Austin, Annabel Croft and Johanna Konta," Moore said.
“Joining the line-up this year will be 2021 champion Ashleigh Barty and, if he’s not playing, 2022 Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios, so anything could happen there.”
While her attitude towards taking a commentary role has changed, she has not changed her stance on making a comeback on the court.
“I don’t have the time – I don’t have the time to train, I don’t have the time to prepare, and I have so many great memories out on this court and now I just get to create new memories,” she said late last year.
“I’m certainly not coming out of retirement.”
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