Australian 15-year-old Ashleigh Barty has reached the final of the Australian Open wild card playoff and will face defending champion Olivia Rogowska. Wimbledon girls' champion Barty is ranked No. 3 in the ITF juniors and has already beaten older players Casey Dellacqua and Arina Rodionova.
''I didn't even think I was going to be in the tournament,'' Barty, told the Sydney Morning Herald. ''I was a wildcard in here, so I'm just pleased to win a few matches and get rewarded. I've just been playing some pretty tennis. I think I'm getting rewarded for the way I'm playing and the way I'm conducting myself on court.''
It is probable that regardless of the result, Barty and Rogowska will both receive Australian Open main draw wild cards. The tournament holds six wild cards into each of the men’s and women’s draws, with others going to players from the United States and France as part of reciprocal agreements between Tennis Australia, the USTA and the French Tennis Federation.