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AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 20, 2017

Ashleigh Barty

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

M. BARTHEL/A. Barty

6-4, 3-6, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Even in defeat, must be some positive takeaways you could walk away with.
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, absolutely. I think if you would have asked me 12 months ago if I was going to be in the third round of the Australian Open, I would say, Mate, you're kidding.

Obviously it's disappointing tonight that we couldn't execute what we wanted. But still a very positive week.

Q. Are you ahead of schedule to where you thought you would be at this time?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, we didn't really put any pressure on where we wanted to be. Going with the flow a little bit. Definitely it's been a great week and a great start to the summer for us.

Q. Broke in the fifth game, then you didn't hold the next two serves. Seem to be going against what you were doing. You seemed to be in control, and then... Did you feel something clicked in that sixth game?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: No, in the match I never sort of really felt like I had control. I thought Mona had time of the ball a lot of the match. I struggled to put pressure on her. It was a little bit scrappy. I don't know how I was able to get that second set, to be honest. It was a bit scrappy. I just hung in there long enough.

Yeah, disappointed to be up a break in the third... In saying that, very positive, third round of the Australian Open. A genuine chance to win the match.

Q. With the conditions, how important is it to finish off that second set before the rain comes and you have a break there?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Oh, we weren't really thinking about it. To be honest, I didn't know it was going to rain. I didn't really expect the rain to come. When it did start to fall, you sort of move on and go with it. Nothing you can do about it. You just have to work for the next point and prepare.

Q. I know we've talked comeback from cricket stuff to death.
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Every time.

Q. Did it feel like home, 10,000 people, Rod Laver Arena?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yes and no. I think to me playing sport is being at home. It's what I've done my whole life. It was certainly enjoyable out there tonight, regardless of the result. I mean, I'm 0-3 on Rod Laver. Maybe I'll request not to play on that anymore.

No, it was certainly enjoyable out there.

Q. Is the comeback complete? Can we stop calling it a comeback?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: You've been calling it a comeback from the start. I'm back. I'm no worries.

Q. Not a comeback for you any more?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: I mean, I felt like it was a comeback maybe for the first two months. When I played my first tournament, I felt like we folded straight back into it. For me, I feel like I'm sort of back where I belong and it's been that way for many months now.

Q. What is the speed of the court like? Was the ball slower?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, it's a little bit different when you close the roof as well. But obviously the conditions can sort of be determined on who you're playing as well, how they get the ball through the court.

But, yeah, I mean, the court speeds don't change much from MCA to Rod Laver anyway.

Q. What have you learned in the last week?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Oh, it's been an amazing week. Just the experiences that we've had to get to play on big courts against some of the best players in the world. It's really exciting. Just to know that we've been able to come out with a really positive mindset every match and have a clear plan, sort of just work towards executing that regardless of where we're playing.

Q. What is the short-term plan now moving ahead?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Well, doubles tomorrow and practice. It's exciting. That's the beauty of tennis: you get another chance tomorrow. I get to wake up tomorrow morning and jump on the court with my best mate and do what we love. It's going to be a good day tomorrow and we'll go from there.

Q. Fair challenge, isn't it, the match you have tomorrow?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, it is. But that's what we play for. We play to play the best players in the world. Case and I always love a good challenge. We'll go out there and have fun tomorrow.

Q. Do this week's results change the expectations for the rest of the year?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Not in my mind, no. I'll have a sitdown and have a discussion with my team, with Tyzzer and Narelle, sort of work out what we want to do scheduling-wise. Expectations, no.

Q. Where did you feel the pressure the most tonight on the court?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: I think tonight I just wasn't able to build enough pressure on Mona's serve. Even though there were quite a few long games, I couldn't find my range and return, which is frustrating when you're playing a player who relies on her serve a bit. That was definitely frustrating.

At the end of the day I was beaten by a better player. We can move on and focus on doubles tomorrow.

Q. Your ranking jumps to 150, around that. You obviously want to get that down lower so you don't have to play qualifying. Is that what you're going to think of when you look at your schedule?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: If you jump 80 or 90 spots in a week, it's a pretty good start. No, we'll work week by week, match by match, go from there.

Q. Another question about the so-called comeback. You've come back pretty revitalized after that break. Nick Kyrgios is having a lot of troubles and doesn't seem to be enjoying his tennis. Would you advise him to take a break?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: I think Nick and I are in very different situations. I think when I needed to take a break, it was sort of my decision. I was only 17 at the time. I think we're in a very different situation. So I can't really speak on behalf of Nick at all.

Q. We only have one Aussie next in the draw. Do you have a message for Daria for tomorrow night?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yeah, I mean, Dash loves it. She's going to go out there and give it a red hot crack. Hopefully she can fly that Aussie flag for us and get into the second week of a Grand Slam again.

Q. Are you going to play singles against Ukraine in a couple weeks?
ASHLEIGH BARTY: Yes, if I'm called upon and get a chance to represent my country again, absolutely I'll do whatever Moll and Pratty want me to do.

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