Ash Barty and Rafa Nadal's iconic gesture after Aus Open triumphs
Ash Barty and Rafa Nadal made history at the year's Australian Open and the two winners have now made a stunning gesture to honour their achievement.
The recently retired Barty, who shocked the tennis world stepping away from the game at 25 years old, became the first Australian to win the grand slam since Chris O'Neil in 1978.
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Barty sent Australia into raptures after securing the title as a record TV audience watched on from around the nation.
What many fans didn't expect is the milestone would be Barty's last grand slam.
Nadal also created history.
The Spaniard became the first man to reach 21 grand slam titles as he defeated Daniil Medvedev in a five-set thriller.
Nadal's triumph capped off one of the greatest grand slam finals of all-time.
And following their historic achievements, the Tennis Hall of Fame has announced both Barty and Nadal have donated their outfits worn during the finals to the museum.
"Magical milestones in Melbourne, living on forever in Newport," the tweet read.
Magical milestones in Melbourne, living on forever in Newport ✨
Following their @AustralianOpen victories in January, @RafaelNadal and @ashbarty donated kits from their historic runs to the ITHF's permanent collection.
Thrilled to share them with generations to come 💙 pic.twitter.com/BYoKixYYoN— Tennis Hall of Fame (@TennisHalloFame) March 29, 2022
The 2022 Australian Open was one of the most dramatic in history with the lead-up dominated by Novak Djokovic's deportation drama.
Ash Barty's retirement shocks tennis world
According to Barty, she's not planning anything special other than her upcoming wedding following her shock retirement.
“I’m not hiding anything. I’ve got no secrets,” she said when asked if there was a secret reason behind her retirement.
“I’ve said exactly what I wanted to say.
“I’m an open book. I am just so proud of all of the work that I have done with my team.
“We have done this together right from the start, have enjoyed every single minute and we have no regrets. We have achieved so much together and it’s been fun on the way.”
Barty finished her career with 114 consecutive weeks as World No.1 and three grand slams.
Meanwhile, Nadal's season took a nasty twist after the Spaniard announced he would take 4-6 weeks out after a stress fracture in his rib.
Nadal appeared to play in pain during his Indian Wells campaign and later admitted he would miss a number of weeks leading up to Roland Garros.
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