Ashleigh Barty confident she’ll make Wimbledon despite hand injury
Ashleigh Barty has pulled out of Eastbourne to give an ongoing hand injury time to rest before Wimbledon, she has revealed.
The Australian, who won her first Grand Slam title earlier this month by capturing the French Open crown, is in fine form after also winning Birmingham and being named world number one in the latest rankings.
She was scheduled to continue her Wimbledon preparation at Eastbourne this week, but has decided to withdraw instead believing a persistent hand injury requires rest if she is to be at her best at SW19
She was scheduled to take part in Eastbourne too, but has opted to rest instead.
“It’s an injury I’ve had to manage since I was 16-years-old,” Barty explained.
“It happens when I have a spike in load, it’s just a bone stress injury and I need to look after it.
? Australian Open QF
? Miami Open ?
? Roland Garros ?
? debut as World #12019 has been a year to remember for Ash Barty. pic.twitter.com/vWuJV3Is67
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) June 24, 2019
“We know how to manage it but it is important to get on top of it straight away.”
“It is time to let my body rest, and manage it as best we can to make sure we are ready for next week.
“At the moment we know how we have to plan it over the next three or four days so we know it can be as good as it can be. If we do that well we should be fine.
“It’s about rest, it’s time off court and then monitoring how many balls I do hit when I am on court.”
Barty will now head to Wimbledon on the back of a 12-match winning streak and will be the top seed for a Grand Slam for the first time.
Eastbourne also wasn’t a total bust for her, as she was presented with the Chris Evert trophy – the prize awarded to a new world number one.
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