Ash Barty has some key words of advice for up-and-coming Australian tennis player Emerson Jones: be the best version of yourself.
Jones, who is 16, took centre stage at the Adelaide International when she beat Chinese world number 37 Xinyu Wang 6-4, 6-0. It was her first match against a top-50 player.
On Wednesday night, she lost to Russia’s Daria Kasatkina but she put up a fierce competition.
“She’s got really good tennis, so I’m already a bit scared, to be honest. She’s just 16,” Kasatkina complimented Jones afterwards.
After a stellar 2024 season, Jones has risen to world number one in the junior girls’ rankings, becoming the first Australian to do so since Jelena Dokic.
She is now set to enter the Australian Open as a wildcard, with commentators drawing comparisons to former world No.1 Barty.
Amid the comparisons of the pair, Barty had some simple advice for the 16-year-old: don’t try to be the next Barty.
“Be the best Emerson Jones that you can be,” she said.
“She’s only a young teenager, 16 years old, so her whole life is ahead of her, her whole career, so this is very much the infancy of where she’s beginning, so I’m excited for her.”
Barty also said she should try and embrace her maiden grand slam without putting too much pressure on it.
“Getting to know Emo a lot more over the last couple of years, she’s a very driven person, she’s passionate, she wants to do well, she’s focused, she’s professional,” Barty said.
“But I really do think this Australian summer is almost the perfect opportunity for her to soak it all in without that pressure.
“She will want to do well and want to play her best tennis but I think it’s about giving herself the opportunity to embrace it all and soak it all in.
“I hope she’s able to come out at this Australian Open and play with a smile on her face, play with freedom because that’s when she plays her best tennis, so fingers crossed she can have a really positive experience regardless of the result.”
Maya Joint impresses
Meanwhile, 18-year-old Maya Joint has impressed at the Hobart International, claiming a spot in the competition’s semi-final this afternoon.
The Aussie teenager has already beaten the 2020 Australian Open Champion Sofia Kenin in straight sets. It was described by the Women’s Tennis Association as a “dream debut”.
a dream debut continues 💜
— wta (@WTA) January 9, 2025
18 year old Maya Joint drops only 4 games in her win over Kenin. Locking in her place in the @HobartTennis semifinals! pic.twitter.com/KGctCfRiAa
In the quarter-finals, she defeated world number 38 Magda Linette, a 2023 Australian Open semifinalist, 6-1, 6-1.
“I feel really good. I’ve played two really great matches (in Hobart) so far and I want to keep going,” she said after win.
“I like being the underdog and have been trying to keep the pressure off myself.”
She is now set to play in her first Australian Open as a wildcard.