© Getty Images Sport – Chris Hyde
Australian tennis legend Ashleigh Barty describes motherhood as “the hardest thing” she has done but adds that raising a child has also been “an incredible thing” at the same time.
When Barty shockingly retired from pro tennis at the age of 25 in 2022, she said she wanted to give herself to some other things in life. Shortly after her retirement, Barty got married to her long-term partner Garry Kissick.
Just before the 2023 Australian Open – where Barty made an appearance as a guest – she announced she was expecting her first child. In July, 27-year-old Barty announced the birth of her son Hayden in an Instagram post.
“He’s [Hayden] been a very good boy, very kind to me as I’m learning. It’s amazing how quickly it’s all gone, how much my life has changed but how natural it all feels. It’s hard – the hardest thing I’ve ever done – but it’s incredible, too. An amazing thing. And it’s probably helped me appreciate my own mother, and my two sisters as well, in how they’re raising their own children,” Barty told The Sydney Morning Herald.
Barty on if her son is going to follow in her tennis footsteps
Although Barty didn’t really stay for too long in tennis, she still achieved massive success and went down as one of the best Australian tennis players ever. During her career, Barty won three Grand Slam titles and she was the top-ranked player in the women’s game at the moment she announced her retirement in 2022 March.
When asked if Hayden liked tennis, Barty admitted she was not sure yet. However, Barty added that Hayden has got “a tiny little toy racket and a rattle shaped like a tennis ball.”
In the same interview, Barty underlined once again that she has no intention of making a post-pregnancy comeback to tennis. Last week, Barty visited the Brisbane International as a special guest and she was accompanied by her son Hayden.
