MELBOURNE, Australia -- It's been difficult for anyone to tune into this year's Australian Open and get the impression tennis is in a safe place Down Under.
The unseeded and temperamental Nick Kyrgios was bounced out of the tournament in straight sets Tuesday night, just hours after Sam Stosur was sent packing by world No. 59 Dayana Yastremska, her fifth consecutive loss at Melbourne Park. The pair joined Bernard Tomic and Daria Gavrilova as first-round casualties at the Australian Open, the first time in 11 years the local quartet had failed to progress to the second round.
Things haven't been any better off the court, either. After Tomic was soundly beaten by Marin Cilic on opening night, the 26-year-old lashed out at Australia's Davis Cup captain and tennis icon Lleyton Hewitt, claiming that "no-one likes him anymore" as he is promoting talent for his own financial gain.
Hewitt may have laughed off the accusation as "Bernie being Bernie," but it did little to ease the tension amongst the Australian ranks. From a local perspective, it's been a far from ideal start to the 2019 Australian Open.
However, there has been one shining light in the form of humble Queenslander Ash Barty.
The 22-year-old needed just one hour and five minutes to blitz China's Yafan Wang 6-2, 6-3 on Wednesday and book her place in the third round.
Her precise and powerful groundstrokes, supreme net play and underrated serve is sure to catch the eye of plenty of women remaining in the draw. Against Wang, Barty fired down seven aces, won 92 percent of points at the net and landed a staggering 29 winners from the 102 points played on Rod Laver Arena.
"I felt like today was pretty clean," Barty said after the match. "I'm happy with the way I've started 2019, it's been a hell of a start.
"It's nice to get into the tournament and come out with two really clean matches. Obviously a straight-sets match is more straightforward than a three-setter but any time you take a win you gain confidence."
Since returning to tennis in 2017 after a 24-month hiatus, Barty has consistently reached the third round at her home Grand Slam without progressing any further. But there's no reason the 15th seed can't go deep in 2019.
Entering this year's tournament, Barty had been one of the form players on the WTA tour. She has now won nine of her past 10 professional matches, with the only loss coming in last weekend's Sydney International final where she was edged in a gripping third set tiebreaker by former world No. 2 Petra Kvitova.
Barty will face the unseeded Maria Sakkari on Friday for a potential fourth-round meeting against 2008 Australian Open champion Maria Sharapova.
Barty has already proved this year she can mix it with the best in the sport; just look at her convincing straight-sets win over world No. 1 Simona Halep at the Sydney International.
However, the Australian isn't getting too carried away, insisting her next task won't be straightforward.
"I'm great friends with [Sakkari], we have a really good relationship," Barty said. "We've played a couple of times now, she's one of the best movers and one of the best competitors out there. My next match will be very tough."
The spotlight may be on Tomic and Hewitt as their intriguing spat drags on, but Australian tennis fans would be better served directing their focus on Barty who is embarking on what could be a memorable Australian Open campaign.