"I made the right decisions": Barty's back and off to winning start

World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty is undefeated since getting back on court for the first time in a year, but she isn't second-guessing her decision to take the time off.

Barty had not competed since the tour returned from its five-month shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, citing safety concerns and Australian travel restrictions. She is finally back now the tour has returned Down Under, winning the title a week ago at the Yarra Valley Classic, defeating Garbine Muguruza in the final of the event played on the Australian Open grounds.

The 25-year-old Aussie said each player had to make their own decisions about whether to play based on where they were.

“Absolutely no regrets for me. I felt like it's been a challenging 12 months for everyone all across the world,” Barty said. “I feel very fortunate to have had the year that I have had. Certainly none of my decisions have any regret. I made the right decisions for the right reasons. I enjoyed my time at home this year. There was nothing but positive vibes and good feelings of the whole year for me."

It was more of the same as she began the Australian Open this week beating Danka Kovinic 6-0, 6-0.

"Now I'm really happy to be back playing tennis with an opportunity to play in front of a crowd here at the Australian Open. It's really special," she said.

Barty did not get to defend her Roland Garros title, but has kept her No. 1 ranking because of changes to the system that allow players to count points from 2019 towards their points total.

While she wasn't particularly concerned with her ranking or the performances of other players while she was off the tour, Barty trained hard during the offseason and is now immersed in it again.

"I didn't keep up a lot with it in a tennis sense. I think for me it was more enjoying my time at home... So in a sense of following the tour, there wasn't a lot. But obviously in the last few weeks since everyone has arrived," she said

Barty, the top seed, next plays fellow Aussie Daria Gavrilova in the second round.