MELBOURNE—World number one Ash Barty overcame a stumbling start to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open with a 6-2 6-4 victory over Ekaterina Alexandrova at an empty Margaret Court Arena on Saturday.
The 24-year-old would have expected the backing of a fiercely partisan crowd for a weekend evening match at her home Grand Slam, but Melbourne’s five-day lockdown left her playing in front of officials, ballkids and coaches.
While most other players have seen plenty of empty courts on the WTA tour over the last year, it was a new experience for Barty, who elected to stay home while the COVID-19 pandemic raged around the world.
“It’s very strange, I’ve never experience…
Keep on reading: Australian Open: Barty bounces into fourth round in empty arena