Australia’s leading light Ashleigh Barty believes she is edging towards career-best form at the perfect time.
The world No.17, fresh from a run to the final at the Sydney International, is ready to launch a deep run at her home Grand Slam.
“Hopefully two weeks,” said Barty with a beaming smile, targeting a successful Australian Open fortnight.
“I’m very positive. We had a fantastic lead-up through Brisbane and Sydney. I feel like I'm playing pretty good tennis.
“I feel like the end of last year I probably found my best tennis. It was nice to sort of be able to touch on that a few times in Sydney, as well.
“It's a new week, a fresh week. Hopefully we can keep the ball rolling from the momentum we created.”
Barty certainly created plenty of momentum. The Aussie No.1 prevailed past Barbora Strycova and countrywoman Daria Gavrilova en route to the Sydney silverware showdown, where she was edged 6-4 6-4 by the rejuvenated Angelique Kerber.
Alex de Minaur also represented the green and gold in a pulsating men’s final, which enhanced the positive sentiment amongst the Australian ranks.
"It’s just pure excitement. The Aussies love playing at home. There’s nothing better than walking out onto an Australian Open court with the crowd behind you,” added Barty.
"I feel like we've got more depth than ever. We've got a really good mix of veterans and young girls coming through. We've got sort of a great team feel. It's a really exciting time.
“This is the best time of the year for all Aussies. I'm just really excited to get underway.”
The 21-year-old shot to prominence as a promising teenager, before a two-year stint away from the sport playing cricket. Barty is adamant that previous experience in dealing with the hype will ensure expectations never become overbearing.
“It's very different now to my experiences first time around. I feel much more comfortable in my own skin,” she explained. “I feel like I'm playing better tennis. I'm more comfortable out on the court, so I can play the way that I want to play.”
The 18th seed will begin her home major against Belarussian teenager Aryna Sabalenka, looking to better a 2017 third-round appearance.
“It’s very cliche, but I’m going one match at a time. It's a fresh tournament. It's a fresh start,” said Barty. “I'll have to focus on my first round and do whatever I can to get through that first round, to then try and dig my teeth into the tournament.”
Barty’s dream of a breakthrough on home soil has been buoyed by 2017 first-time major winners Jelena Ostapenko (Roland Garros) and Sloane Stephens (US Open).
“I think it's amazing for the sport to have such an open tournament, open sort of field, that's strong, that anyone can win on a given day,” she said.
Perhaps it’s Barty’s time to strike.