Ash Barty's sad admission after Nick Kyrgios heroics at Wimbledon
Ash Barty is so content with her life away from tennis that she didn't even watch either of the Wimbledon finals - including compatriot Nick Kyrgios against Novak Djokovic.
Kyrgios went down in four sets against Djokovic in Sunday's final, falling agonisingly short of emulating Barty's feat of winning Wimbledon in 2021.
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But Barty, who shocked the tennis world earlier this year when she announced her retirement at age 25, has revealed she didn't watch a minute of the men's or women's finals.
Elena Rybakina beat Ons Jabeur in the women's final, becoming the first player from Kazakhstan to win a grand slam title.
“I didn’t watch this year’s Wimbledon finals,” she told The Guardian.
“Sorry to disappoint. Obviously I was rapt for Ons and Elena, who are both brilliant girls. And it was obviously awesome to see Nick, who I’ve known for over a dozen years, get to the final.
“But since retiring I’ve probably watched as many matches as I did when I was playing, which was slim to none. Occasionally we’ll have it on as background noise but it’s very seldom that I’ll sit down and watch a match from start to end with any interest. I hit enough tennis balls in my life. I don’t need to see others hitting them as well.”
Barty said she has no regrets about her decision to retire and is loving life away from tennis.
"I knew it was the right time for me. It was what I wanted to do. And I know that a lot of people may still not understand it," she said.
“But I hope they respect that in the sense that it was my decision. And yeah, it’s been incredible. It’s been everything that I’ve ever wanted.”
Ash Barty shuts down golf speculation
Barty has spent a lot of her spare time on the golf course in recent months, but continues to deny she's eyeing a switch to the sport professionally.
In an interview with Channel 9 recently, Barty said: "I love golf, but much to everyone's disappointment, I will never be playing professionally.
"I will never be playing another professional sport. I've got other things that I would love to do.
"I love it as a hobby, but it's not for me."
The Queenslander said she was enjoying not having to travel around the world for the majority of the year and taking advantage of a slower-paced life with partner Gary Kissick.
"Just actually being in my kitchen, being in my house - cleaning - I find it really therapeutic," she said.
"I love cooking, I love just being home."
Barty participated in the Icons Series golf event earlier this month, playing alongside some of the biggest names in world sport.
However she was conspicuously absent when Wimbledon celebrated its former champions last week.
Barty was a notable absentee as the All England Club held a ceremony with former champions to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Wimbledon centre court.
Australian greats Margaret Court, Rod Laver, John Newcombe, Pat Cash and Lleyton Hewitt were all in attendance, but Barty and her idol Evonne Goolagong couldn't make it.
On Tuesday she enjoyed a hit at St Andrews ahead of The Open Championship, which starts on Thursday.
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