Barty defeats Suarez Navarro in Centre Court battle at Wimbledon

World No.1 Ashleigh Barty kicked off Centre Court play on Tuesday with a 6-1, 6-7(1), 6-1 victory over Carla Suárez Navarro in their opening-round clash at Wimbledon.

In her post-match press conference, Barty called Suárez Navarro "a hell of a competitor, a hell of a fighter. It was a privilege to be able to share that moment, share that court with her. I hadn't had the opportunity to play Carla. It was really special to be able to experience what she can bring from the other side of the court."

Surprisingly, it was the first meeting between top seed Barty and former World No.6 Suárez Navarro, and it came at an emotional moment for Suárez Navarro. The Spaniard plans for this to be her final Wimbledon as she aims to retire after this season's US Open.

Moreover, it was just Suárez Navarro’s second match since her return from successful treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Suárez Navarro recently made her inspiring comeback at Roland Garros, where she lost a three-setter to Sloane Stephens in the opening round.

"I think Wimbledon made me a really good gift," Suárez Navarro said, during her post-match press conference. "I cannot ask for anything else better than this day.

"One of my last matches here against Ash, No.1 of the world, Centre Court, with the roof. Was amazing. I really enjoy everything I pass through. I think now, today, I am the most happy player in the tournament, for sure."

"At the end, it was really nice," Suárez Navarro continued, as she reflected upon the ovation she received after her final Wimbledon appearance. "I really appreciate it. The crowd was amazing. I mean, it was fantastic. I'm in love with this tournament, this court and this crowd."

Said Barty: "I think all credit goes to [Suárez Navarro] for her resilience and her nature as a competitor, to be able to come back from the adversity that she has, and to be able to have that moment with her was nothing shy of remarkable."

Barty served for the match at 5-4 in the second set, but she saw that lead slip away as Suárez Navarro pulled this match into a decider. Ultimately, the Australian came through in a commanding third set. Barty finished the match with 37 winners to 12 from Suárez Navarro (including a 13-0 difference in aces).

Read more: Barty's spirits high as she prepares for Wimbledon opener

"More than anything, it was a great battle," Barty said. "In the game where I was trying to serve out the match [in the second set], I just missed a few too many first serves and Carla was able to take the game on and hit some incredible returns. I think we just kind of accepted that and moved on."

The Centre Court roof was closed due to rain during the fourth game of the match, causing a 15-minute pause, but that did not disturb Barty in the least, as she came back and polished off a break to lead 3-1. Both players were using their slices to force errors, but it was the top seed who came up with the goods more often in the opener, as she swept to a one-set lead.

After level footing through 4-4 in the second set, Barty’s strength on return gave her a break and a chance to serve out the match at 5-4. But Suárez Navarro refused to yield and promptly broke back, leading the pair into a tiebreak. In the breaker, the Spaniard’s groundstrokes were in full flight, forcing errors from Barty in the last four points to dominate.

However, Barty would not let the match get out of her grasp, and she regrouped to pick off the first 13 points of the decider on her way to a commanding 5-0 lead. Suárez Navarro put herself on the scoreboard before the third set concluded, but Barty was too sturdy in the end as she closed out the match with a forehand winner, and a hug at the net to her vanquished foe.

Barty converted all five of the break points she held en route to victory in an hour and 43 minutes. The Australian improves to 29-6 on the season as she moves one step closer to a possible first Wimbledon quarterfinal.

However, Barty has three more wins to obtain before she gets past that hurdle, with her next match being a second-round tilt against Anna Blinkova of Russia. Blinkova defeated Timea Babos, 6-2, 6-2.

Earlier on Tuesday, No.8 seed Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic got through a tricky first-round clash at Wimbledon, moving past recent Roland Garros semifinalist Tamara Zidansek of Slovenia, 7-5, 6-4.

In the first meeting between the pair, former World No.1 Pliskova took an hour and 17 minutes to charge back from a late break down in the first set to obtain victory, booking a spot in the second round in London for the eighth consecutive edition of the event.

On Monday, Pliskova fell out of the Top 10 of the WTA singles rankings for the first time in nearly five years, but her powerful game remained unaffected by any ranking jostles as she slammed ten aces, won 82 percent of her first-service points, and converted all three of the break points she held.

Zidansek was playing her first match since a breakthrough run to her maiden major semifinal in Paris mere weeks ago, which put her into the Top 50 for the first time. But after an early lead, the Slovene could not quite keep pace with the firepower from Pliskova, as the Czech had 26 winners to Zidansek's 14.

A break by Zidansek helped her build a quick 3-0 lead, but when serving for the set at 5-3, Zidansek could not keep her run going, and Pliskova broke her serve by forcing an error with a fierce forehand. That kicked off a streak of four straight games by Pliskova, who clinched the set with back-to-back aces.

In the second set, Pliskova started the 2-2 game with a thunderous return, eventually getting a break for 3-2. After Pliskova saved a break point in the next game with another strong serve, there proved to be no twists and turns in the second set. Pliskova took the win, firing aces on game points to win her last two service games at love.

Pliskova has another challenging match next up, as she will face former Top 20 player Donna Vekic of Croatia. Vekic eased past Anastasia Potapova of Russia, 6-1, 6-4.

Pliskova was just one of an array of seeds to capture straight-set wins early on Tuesday. No.21 seed Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, for example, needed a whisker over an hour to defeat Rebecca Peterson of Sweden, 6-2, 6-1.

Jabeur is only two weeks removed from winning her first WTA singles title on grass in Birmingham, where she became the first Arab singles titlist in tour history. Her grass-court prowess continued at Wimbledon, where she won 100 percent of her first service points (18-for-18) and never faced a break point.

No.15 seed Maria Sakkari of Greece also zipped into the second round, dispatching Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands, 6-1, 6-1 in just 49 minutes.

Sakkari, who made her first Grand Slam semifinal at Roland Garros earlier this month, was also impenetrable on first serve, going 15-for-15 when she got that shot into play. Sakkari had 19 winners, including seven aces, while Rus could muster up only three winners all day.

No.13 seed Elise Mertens of Belgium also had a swift win, defeating British wildcard Harriet Dart, 6-1, 6-3 in an hour and 17 minutes.

Dart pleased the crowds at 2019 Wimbledon during her run to the third round, but Mertens ended the Brit's 2021 campaign right away, as the Belgian converted five of her 13 break points in their clash.