"There were tears when I left" - Barty reveals emotional farewell to Australia

Ashleigh Barty has always been outspoken of her love for her native Australia and recently she spoke about the difficult of leaving the continent for a prolonged period of time.

Ashleigh Barty spent all of 2020 in her native Australia electing not to leave the continent when the season restarted. She has also been very outspoken about her love for her native county and recently revealed the difficulty of leaving it this year.

The 25-year old said:

“Without a doubt, it was something that was new to me, new to try and wrap my head around and comprehend where we’re going to be away for such an extended period. Of course, there were tears the days leading up (to leaving Australia). There were tears when I did finally leave, and then when we left. Then we were delayed and had to leave again. It was all kind of happening.”

Barty last played in Rome where she retired in her match against Coco Gauff. On that decision she said:

“It was really important that I listen to my body knowing we have a grand slam in two weeks’ time. It’s something I’ve had to manage over my career. It pops up every now and again. I’m confident in my team. We know how to manage this injury to know that in a couple of weeks it’ll be fine.”

In order not to feel lonely at the French Open Barty received a care package that included all her favourites treats from her native Australia which delighted Barty so much that she posted a picture of the package on her Instagram. She captioned the photo with 'When the ultimate care package is waiting for you in Paris,” she captioned the post, complete with a love-heart eyes emoji.'