Ash Barty Going For Gold – Australia’s Tennis Hopes for the Tokyo Olympics Games

Australia have named a strong tennis team for the Tokyo Olympic games including women's world number one Ash Barty. The French Open winner spent much of 2020 at home missing most of the season due to the covid pandemic but is back at the top of her game this year. So much so, she is currently the hot favourite to win Wimbledon with the best betting sites such as William Hill with odds of 7/2 (4.5). Expectation brings pressure and it's how Barty will deal with that, that will determine how successful her year is. If she goes on to win Wimbledon, she will surely be the one to beat for gold in Japan.

Barty is set to take part in both the singles and doubles events, with friend Storm Sanders pairing with her in the women's doubles. The 25-year-old is excited about representing her country:

"Any opportunity you get to wear the green and gold, I wanted to grab it with both hands,"

"I'm fit, I'm healthy, I'm excited to play doubles with Storm, she's a childhood friend of mine and we've played a lot together. So, to be able to live out this dream with her is really, really special.

The announcement was made just a day after Serena Williams revealed she would not be taking part. The veteran 39-year-old had decided that the bubble system requiring her to take weeks away from her daughter was not something she was willing to do. With the four-time gold medallist not taking part, this gives Barty an even better chance of success.

Serena Williams is not the only big name in the game missing from the entry list. The Tokyo Olympics has of course already been delayed by a year, but there is still a lot of uncertainty surrounding the event.

Many tennis stars have dropped out, for various reasons, including Rafael Nadal, Dominic Theim and Naomi Osaka. Roger Federer is also said to be waiting until Wimbledon is over before making his final decision. All are highly ranked but won't be travelling to take part. Some are saying the event will not be as special as a result, but Australian Sam Stosur can't wait to get stuck into her fifth games, she is quoted as saying:

"It is super special being able to represent your country in one Olympics let alone five,"

Stosur has played her country in Athens (2004), Beijing (2008), London (2012) and Rio (2016). Although she has never made it past the third round, she is easily the most experienced of the 11-person Australian team. Barty, Nick Kyrgios and Alex de Minaur will all be making their debut at the event.

Kyrgios is well-known to be a bit of a loose cannon but being surrounded by his fellow Australians may put him at ease. He thrilled fans at Wimbledon this year with his flamboyant style, however, he was unfortunately forced to retire during his third-round match with Felix Auger-Aliassime. Much like Barty, he has missed much of the tennis calendar preferring not to take part in covid bubble events, so it is likely that match fitness got the better of him.

It is an exciting time for Australian tennis with a good mix of experience and youth. They will be the country to watch going into the Games and could very well bring home a few medals. News that Brisbane has already unofficially been awarded the Summer Olympics in 2032 could be a further catalyst for the team to achieve great things this year. The official vote won't happen until just before the Olympics this year gets underway, but there is certainly an expectation for medals to come home.