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Tokyo Olympics: Australia deserved mixed doubles bronze, says Ashleigh Barty

WION Web Team
New Delhi, Delhi, India Updated: Aug 01, 2021, 11:24 AM IST
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Photograph:(Reuters)

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Australia were handed an automatic bronze in the mixed doubles after world number one Novak Djokovic withdrew.

Australia were handed the bronze medal in the mixed doubles after world number one Novak Djokovic pulled out on account of an injury yet Ashleigh Barty said on Sunday they completely deserved the medal subsequent to playing "incredible" tennis this week. 

Novak Djokovic had joined forces with Nina Stojanovic for the mixed doubles yet pulled out with a shoulder injury after to losing to Pablo Carreno Busta in the singles bronze medal match, guaranteeing women's World number one Ashleigh Barty and accomplice John Peers of the third spot at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday.

"We played incredible tennis this week," Barty, a two-time Grand Slam champion fresh off her victory at Wimbledon, told reporters. "It was a unique circumstance to win the bronze but we deserved it.

"For me, being my first experience (at the Olympics), it is quite remarkable. We did not want to make up the numbers. We wanted to win a medal for our country.

"To be able to contribute to our medal count is really exciting. A massive highlight of my career being able to call myself an Olympian and a medallist."

Ashleigh Barty was shocked in the first round of the singles by Spain's 48th-positioned Sara Sorribes Tormo, while her women's singles run with Storm Sanders finished in the quarter-final. 

In the mixed doubles semi-finals, Peers and Barty lost in straight sets to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Andrey Rublev of the Russian Olympic Committee.

"We obviously wanted to have the challenge of playing one of the best nations in the world. But regardless of whether we got on the court or not I feel we deserved it. We definitely deserved to be in the bronze medal match," she said.

"No matter what format, singles, doubles or mixed, I came here with a focus to win a medal for our nation."