Ashleigh Barty ‘disappointed’ she allowed medical time-out to ‘become a turning point’

Australian Open
Ashleigh Barty perplexed

Ashleigh Barty refused to criticise Karolina Muchova’s decision to take a medical time-out during their Australian Open quarter-final clash, insisting that it “should not be a massive turning point” during a match.

The world No 1 looked to be cruising towards a semi-final place after she won the opening set 6-1 and broke early in the second for a 2-1 lead.

Muchova then requested a medical time-out as her “head was spinning” and she found a second and third gear after receiving treatment.

The Czech turned things around as she won of the five of the next six games to take the match to a decider while in the third set she broke in games one and seven to get over the finish line.

Muchova said after the match she called for the trainer as she felt a little dizzy, but Barty insists she should not been thrown off course by the long break.

“I don’t write the rules. I don’t write the rules. I abide by them. All of us players, we abide by the rules that are written,” world No 1 Barty said.

“It’s not my place to comment here whether she had an injury or not. That’s the physios and the doctors.

“Obviously that she’s taken her medical time-out meant that there was something wrong. She was within the rules, within the guidelines to take that time.”

She insisted: “If she wasn’t within the rules, the physios and the doctors would have said so. That’s the laws of our game, is that we have those medical time-outs for cases that are needed. Obviously she needed that today. Completely within the rules for her to take that.

“From my point of view, I’ve played a lot of matches where there have been medical time-outs. I’ve taken medical time-outs myself before, so that shouldn’t be a massive turning point in the match.

“I was disappointed that I let that become a turning point. I’m experienced enough now to be able to deal with that.”

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Ashleigh Barty Karolina Muchova

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