Start the Barty! Kate and William congratulate Australian Ashleigh Barty on Wimbledon win
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have congratulated Wimbledon winner Ashleigh Barty on an “incredible” final.
Kate and William were watching Saturday’s match from the Royal Box, alongside celebrities and tennis greats as the Australian played her way to success.
Keen tennis fan Kate, who is patron of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, presented the trophies to winner Barty and Czech finalist Karolina Pliskova.
A tweet from the royal couple’s official account, read: “What an incredible match and performance by both athletes! Congratulations @ashbarty on being crowned #Wimbledon champion.”
Kate, who has has regularly attended the Wimbledon championships since her marriage to William in 2011, wore a green dress and white heels.
William donned a light blue suit jacket, light-coloured shirt, dark trousers and tie, with the couple both wearing face masks as they took their seats ahead of the match on Centre Court.
Kate’s appearance at Wimbledon follows a period of self-isolation after being in close contact with someone who had tested positive for Covid-19.
Kensington Palace said by Saturday her self-isolation period would have finished, but did not confirm when it officially ended.
Just a few rows behind the couple in the Royal Box sat actor Priyanka Chopra, who is known to be a friend of their sister-in-law, the Duchess of Sussex.
Tom Cruise made an appearance in the stands with his Mission Impossible co-star Hayley Atwell for what was a a star-studded Saturday at the world-famous tennis tournament.
Opera singer Katherine Jenkins, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and previous winners Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King all watched the match from the Royal Box.
Following the presentation, Barty said: “It took me a long time to dare to dream about winning this tournament. It’s better than I ever could have imagined.”
Runner-up Pliskova said: “Ash played an incredible match and an incredible tournament. She played very well, congrats to her and her team.”