BEIJING, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- Women's singles world No. 1 Ashleigh Barty said on Sunday that her calf felt better than expected before kicking off her China Open campaign.
Barty had to deal with her left calf issue and lost Friday's Wuhan Open semifinal to eventual champion Arnya Sabalenka.
"I haven't been on court since my match in Wuhan. We'll look to get on court this afternoon and kind of test it out," said the reigning French Open champion.
"From how it's been going, it's been marginally better than we expected. I'm sure that we'll have no issue. It's just about now ticking the boxes and making sure it's all right to go," she added.
Top-seeded Barty enjoys a bye in the first round this year in the Chinese capital.
The Aussie became discreet when talking about her expectation towards the China Open.
"It's hard for me to really think too much about the rounds other than my first match. It's the only match that I can focus on for the time being.
"Try to do the best that I can in that match. If I get through and have another opportunity in later rounds, it's a bonus," she pointed out.
Barty thought that constant changes of women's singles world No. 1 position in recent years "just shows the depth of the sport".
"There have been many players that have stood up on the biggest occasions and have taken their opportunities. It's proven over the course of 12 months that there have been different players dominating different times of the year," she commented.
"For me, to be in this position now is incredible. I feel like I'm working hard every single day to try to do the right things to stay in that position. It's about trying to do what we want to do, making sure that we're doing the best of our ability," added Barty.
