In a season of firsts, Ashleigh Barty brought up another landmark as a straight-sets victory over Jil Teichmann, the Swiss wildcard whose giant-killing exploits have been the talk of the town this week, earned the Australian a maiden title in Cincinnati. It was a fifth tournament win of the season for Barty, who can now look to New York with confidence as she seeks to follow her Wimbledon triumph with a first US Open crown. Such was the clinical authority with which Barty dispatched Teichmann, 6-3, 6-1 in an hour and 13 minutes, that it seems strange to think there was debate earlier in the year about whether she merited her No 1 ranking. No one doubts her status now, and it seems unlikely that the outcome here would have been any different had Naomi Osaka, the reigning US and Australian Open champion – seen by some as the de facto No 1 earlier in the season – blocked her path to the title rather than a player ranked 76th in the world.
That Osaka did not make her scheduled place in the final was down to Teichmann, whose third-round win over the number two seed sent shockwaves through the tournament. Her impact in Cincinnati remains seismic, even in defeat. Barty had never faced the Swiss before, but she was hardly oblivious to the danger posed by an opponent who had beaten not only Osaka but also Belinda Bencic, the Olympic champion, and Karolina Pliskova, the world No 4, en route to the final. The Australian had offered an insightful appraisal of Teichmann’s game on the eve of the match, and initially adopted a conservative approach to the contest, probing from the baseline as she sought to stretch the Swiss wide on her backhand before firing forehands into the open court.
The strategy, underpinned by a typically commanding performance on serve, worked like a dream. For a set, Teichmann did very little wrong. The Swiss staved off a break point in her opening service game, recovering well after Barty punished a short approach shot with a rolled forehand pass and then feathered a drop shot for a winner. Teichmann again showed her resilience when she recovered from 0-30 to level the opening set at 3-3. But Barty went in for the kill like a boa constrictor, gently squeezing the life out of her prey with a gradual accumulation of pressure. The squeeze finally told in the eighth game, where Barty flicked a backhand pass for a winner and then drew a mishit from Teichmann with a penetrating crosscourt return. It was all too much for the Swiss, who netted off either wing to concede the break.
With Barty serving for the set, Teichmann demonstrated her speed by racing on to a Barty drop shot and angling the ball acutely across the face of the net. Her athleticism has been every bit as potent a weapon this week as her swinging southpaw serve and big forehand, but Barty was not to be outdone. Bursting forward to track down a ball that would have been a winner against many players, the Australian steered a winner on to the baseline, raising an understated fist in celebration. It was another minor battle won, a demonstration that she could match Teichmann physically as well as technically, and it did nothing to lift the unseeded player’s spirits.
Now Barty was unstoppable. She wrapped up the first set with an ace and fashioned an immediate chance to break at the start of the second. Teichmann fought gamely, twice fending off break points, but when Barty once more pulled her wide on her backhand before pounding away a drive volley to bring up a third, the game was up. A clinical backhand pass secured the break, and Barty soon clinched a second with a crisp volley. At 0-5, Teichmann earned her only break of the match, avoiding a second-set whitewash, but it was too little, too late for the 24-year-old. It has nonetheless been an unforgettable week for Teichmann, who will rise 31 places in the rankings to world No 45. No one will want to face her at the US Open.
“I hadn’t really hit a lot of balls between Wimbledon and coming here,” Barty, who lost her opening match to Sara Sorribes Tormo at the Tokyo Olympics, told the Tennis Channel. “I tried to find a way to refresh myself mentally, physically, and try and reignite the fire, once we got here, of the competition. I found that at the start of the week and it was an easier transition than I thought. It was really nice to come out and compete and do what I love.”
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