Can this Aussie teen cause another upset at the Australian Open?

[ad_1] In 2022 the "Barty celebration" abruptly got here to an finish when Ash Barty, contemporary off her residence grand slam win and at world primary, introduced her retirement to the shock of the tennis world, leaving a spot of Australian expertise in ladies's tennis.

Whereas it is a cavity but to be crammed, there's rising optimism across the up-and-comers, together with 18-year-old Maya Joint, who obtained the eye of the worldwide tennis crowd when she secured a shock semifinal berth on the Hobart Worldwide this month.

On her approach there, Joint defeated Australian Open 2020 champion Sofia Kenin, world quantity 38 Magda Linette and world quantity 53 Olga Danilovic earlier than second seed Elise Mertens ended her marketing campaign.

This Aussie teen has already impressed a champ Here is what to anticipate of her grand slam debut.

Just a few months earlier, she had a serious breakthrough together with her first grand slam principal draw singles win on the US Open, defeating Germany's Laura Siegemund.

On the finish of 2023, Joint was ranked 773. In simply over a yr she had climbed to 118.

She is certainly one of eight Australian ladies competing in the primary draw on the Australian Open, six of whom are underneath the age of 26.

Joint is a twin citizen and was raised in Michigan. She represented the USA early in her junior profession, earlier than switching allegiance in mid-2023.

Maya Joint is on the cusp of the highest 100. ( Getty Photographs: Chris Hyde )

One in every of her targets for 2025 is to get inside the highest 100 and play all 4 slams.

"There's lots of nice gamers which are simply outdoors the highest hundred," Joint mentioned.

"It is very nice to be part of such an amazing group of women. All of us assist one another. All of us message one another after matches, win or loss. It is very nice to be part of that," Joint mentioned.

This consists of Queenslanders 16-year-old Emerson Jones, who's the world's top-ranked junior lady, and Kim Birrell, who's Australia's highest-ranked lady at 99.

There's additionally Olivia Gadecki, who earned a spot in the primary draw, 5 wildcards in Daria Saville, Alja Tomljanovic, Talia Gibson, Joint and Jones, and Destanee Aiava who was one of many 16 gamers who made it via qualifying (together with Birrell).

Maya Joint has a tricky first spherical opponent on the Australian Open. ( AAP: Jono Searle )

None are anticipated to have notably deep runs — notably with brutal attracts. Joint is up first towards US Open finalist Jessica Pegula, whereas Jones has 2023 Australian Open runner-up Elena Rybakina.

However the children have been inflicting upsets already this yr. Jones beat world quantity 37 Wang Xin from China in straight units within the Adelaide Worldwide.

In the meantime, Birrell had a formidable run on the Brisbane Worldwide, the place she upset world quantity eight Emma Navarro and fell agonisingly in need of a semifinal spot to Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina.

Given this, Tomljanovic mentioned the state of girls's tennis in Australia was in an thrilling stage.

"We have got just a few gamers who've been across the block, like myself, and we're nonetheless able to performing some harm. Then there's this youthful technology like Emerson and Liv [Gadecki] who've such a brilliant future," Tomljanović informed ABC Sport.

"There's that center [generation] like Kim Birrell, who're settling into their primes and it took a while. I believe that is all about perception as a result of I had an identical path.

"To see Kim have such an enormous week in Brisbane after which come and again it up within the qualifiers, I can inform you first-and that is not a simple factor to do."

Tomljanović mentoring future stars Ajla Tomljanović has endured her fair proportion of setbacks throughout her 16-year profession.

Joint performs Pegula on Monday, January 12 on the Australian Open, slated for 5pm.

ABC Sport Each day podcast ABC Sport Each day is your day by day sports activities dialog. We dive into the most important story of the day and get you up to the mark with every little thing else that is making headlines.