REVEALED: What is on Ash Barty's face-mask at French Open

Ash Barty won her opening match at the French Open, after another injury scare, and the World No.1 had fans guessing what animal was on her face mask during her first interview.

The World No.1 did her best to put a positive spin on a concerning injury situation that threatens to derail her chances of claiming a second major trophy at the French Open.

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The 2019 champion battled through a number of complaints to book her spot in the second round with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 win over the dangerous Bernarda Pera.

But following her first victory at Roland Garros since she lifted the trophy, Barty sported a new face mask.

Barty has a reputation of wearing some colourful designs of animals on her masks at recent events and the Aussie maintained this theme.

Fans took to social media taking a guess of what animal was on the design during the interview, before praising the 'emu' design.

The Tennis Podcast couldn't help but crack a joke at the design, alluding to the 'Emu wars'.

Ash Barty's array of masks

Barty has sported a number of masks, featuring different animals, during her time back on the WTA Tour.

One of her more popular masks was seen during her victory at the Miami Open, which featured turtles.

During the Madrid Open, Barty wore a mask featuring monkeys.

Fans will be hoping to see more of Barty's mask as she progresses further into the tournament.

Ash Barty's injury worries

Despite playing through obvious discomfort, the 25-year-old found a way to dig deep and survive the first round scare, insisting she will continue to keep fighting.

Back on Court Philippe Chatrier for the first time since winning the title there in 2019, Barty - who decided not to defend her title in pandemic-hit 2020 - told the small crowd that she'd managed to prevail because: "I just keep fighting."

That battle will now have to go on for a fortnight if she's to regain her French Open title, with the top seed revealing how the injury to her left hip, which flared up over the weekend, was going to make surviving the tournament difficult.

"It's going to be a little bit tough this week," said Barty, somehow summoning up a smile.

"(The injury) just needed some (timeout) today to try to release it off as best I could.

"We were able to fight through, able to give ourselves a chance to play again the next round."

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