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French Open 2019: Women's Final Winner, Score and Twitter Reaction
June 8, 2019
Australian Ashleigh Barty finished off her spectacular run at the French Open with a one-sided 6-1, 6-3 triumph over Marketa Vondrousova in the tournament's championship match.
The 23-year-old eighth seed dominated from the start with sharp ground strokes, strong serving and a perfect strategy. The 19-year-old Vondrousova seemed to be a step or more slower than she had been in previous matches, and aside from a few service games in the second set, she simply could not compete with her rival from Down Under.
Barty became the first Australian woman to win in Paris since Margaret Court achieved the honor in 1973 and secure the first Grand Slam title of her career.
It's not a surprise that Barty dominated the match statistically. She had an edge in nearly all measurable categories, and her most significant advantages came in winners (27-10), receiving points won (33-18) and break points won (5-1), per RolandGarros.com.
Barty also had an 11 miles per hour edge in the speed of her serve over her younger rival.
Barty won her first three matches in the French Open without losing a set. She was pushed to three sets in her fourth-round match by Sofia Kenin, who had previously ousted Serena Williams from the tournament.
After a 6-3,7-5 victory over Madison Keys in the quarterfinal, Barty lost the opening set of her semifinal match to American Amanda Anisimova before taking the final two sets.
Vondrousova congratulated her opponent in the award ceremony. "Ashleigh you earned your title today and you deserved it," Vondrousova said at center court. "You gave me a lesson today."
Australian men's tennis player John Millman offered his congratulations to Barty, whom he has known since her early years in the sport.
Barty was ranked in the 600 range three years ago, and the victory in the French Open allowed her to rise to the No. 2 spot in the rankings.
"It's just mind boggling," Barty told NBC's Mary Carillo. "It has been an amazing journey and I have enjoyed every single minute, and today was the perfect match for me.
"I just told myself that I may never get this opportunity again, so I just went for it with both hands. It's quite amazing, and I tried to play my brand of tennis.
"The fact that it came on the red clay of Paris is surprising. I'm learning to enjoy playing on this surface."
Barty had left the sport for 18 months to play cricket in 2014. She clearly made a smart choice by returning to tennis.