Same old, same old. If Ashleigh Barty feels the weight of national expectation, she has a funny way of showing it. Her 6-1, 6-3 victory over Madison Keys, the unseeded American whose resurgence has provided such a stirring storyline over the past fortnight, was achieved with the same fuss-free efficiency that has been her hallmark throughout this Australian summer.
Barty’s sixth successive straight sets victory – ninth, if you include her romp to the Adelaide title three weeks ago – took her total time on court at Melbourne Park to a touch over six hours. In the process, she has conceded just 21 games; this century, only the Williams sisters have conceded fewer on the way to a major final. It may be 42 years since an Australian woman last reached a final at her home slam, but you would never guess it from the serene manner in which Barty has gone about her business.
There was no euphoria at the end, not on the court at least. An understated clench of the fist, a kind word for her vanquished opponent, a nod of acknowledgement to the crowd: that was as excited as Barty got. There is still one match to go, and she is not here to come second.
The 25-year-old will face Danielle Collins on Saturday with the aim of becoming the first Australian to win the title since Chris O’Neil in 1978. “Are you ready?” Jim Courier asked her on court afterwards. “Absolutely, let’s do it,” she shot back. Barty’s willingness to embrace the clamour of a public desperate to acclaim a homegrown champion leaves Collins, who later reached the first slam final of her career with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Poland’s Iga Swiatek, facing an unenviable task.
“It’s fun,” said Barty, who is spearheading a home push that has seen four Australians reach the men’s doubles final – Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis will face Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell on Saturday – and brought Dylan Alcott’s eighth consecutive appearance in the quad singles final.
“It’s brilliant to be playing in the business end of your home slam. I’m not going to lie about that. It’s amazing. I think being able to experience it multiple times has been incredible, but Saturday is going to be a new experience for me.
“So I go out there and embrace it, smile, try and do the best that I can. And whatever happens, happens. It’s been an incredible January, an incredible summer for us. I’m really looking forward to having one last crack here, to really go out there and enjoy it.”
The 51st-ranked Keys, who had dismantled two title contenders in the previous two rounds with her victories over Paula Badosa and Barbora Krejcikova, came in with a plan but was unable to execute it. The excellence of Barty’s sliced backhand, which the American had hoped to attack but found virtually unplayable, saw to that. By the time Keys started swinging with the freedom required to unsettle an opponent at the peak of her powers, she was a game from defeat.
“I think the game plan was definitely trying to play a little bit heavier to her slice, so that she couldn’t pin me in that backhand corner,” said the 26-year-old. “The tough thing, though, is that you have to have so much racquet head speed when her slice is coming in, but then you also have to balance not overhitting it.
“I felt like I started getting a better feel of it in the middle of the second set, but at that point being a set and a break down against the world No 1 is kind of a difficult position to start feeling yourself.”
Keys is hardly the first player to come up short against the multi-faceted Queenslander. You would need a microscope to locate any flaws in Barty’s game. Her forehand and first serve are immense, an irresistible combination of power and placement. Her second serve, delivered with heavy spin and relentless consistency, is impregnable, while her rhythm-disrupting sliced backhand is the stuff of nightmares for rivals more accustomed to slugging balls back and forth at escape velocity.
“Everything has just improved a little bit,” said Keys of the Wimbledon champion’s game. “I think she’s got a little bit more precise on her serve. I think her forehand she’s doing a really good job at mixing up paces and spins, as well. It feels like you can’t really get in a rhythm off of that forehand side. Then on her backhand side, I mean, everything is coming in at your shoelaces on the baseline. So it’s not like you can really do anything.”
It will be intriguing to see what Collins can do. The combative American is unlikely to be beaten before she starts, as so many of Barty’s opponents appear to be. If Collins can reproduce the fearless shot-making, unwavering intensity and cast-iron belief that swept aside Swiatek, the top seed is unlikely to have everything her own way.
It was a brutal exhibition of first-strike tennis from Collins, who danced like a prize fighter as Swiatek prepared to open the match on serve and immediately came out swinging. Rarely can the Pole’s second delivery have taken a more savage and sustained beating. Battering the ball off both wings, Collins raced into a 4-0 lead and never looked back, detained only by a momentary wobble as she served for the first set at 5-2. Barty will need all her guile to defuse the 27th seed’s firepower.
“It feels amazing,” said Collins. “It’s been such a journey and it doesn’t happen overnight. I had so many years of hard work and hours at an early age on court. Yesterday I was talking about the early mornings my dad would get up with me and practise with me before school. It’s just incredible to be on this stage and, especially with all the health challenges, I’m just so grateful. I couldn’t be happier.”