Chris Silverwood would appear to be back in contention for the role of England's head coach, as the ECB continues to examine at its options to replace Trevor Bayliss.

Silverwood has always been a strong candidate. As the team's current bowling coach, he has developed an excellent relationship with the current crop of players and has a good history as head coach having led Essex to the Championship title in 2017. But he remains somewhat nervous around the media and was, at the start of this recruitment process, seen as the next-but-one choice for the role.

But with Alec Stewart, the preferred candidate for the role, having pulled out of the process in recent days, the ECB has been forced to look again.

Gary Kirsten, who enjoyed great success as head coach with India and South Africa, was thought to be the favourite, but is understood to have given an underwhelming presentation during his interview on Wednesday. There may also be some reservations about Kirsten's initial ambivalence - he originally notified the ECB that he would only be interested if the role was split between red and white-ball coaches - and the fact his enthusiasm was revived only after he was sacked from his coaching position in the IPL.

The decision ultimately lies with the director of England men's cricket, Ashley Giles. He has previously admitted he would prefer to appoint an English candidate and has referenced the importance of understanding team culture and reinforcing the sense of pride and unity inherent in representing the side.

Silverwood, as a former England player and an important figure in recent improvements in team culture, is therefore looking a stronger candidate than ever. Kirsten, having taken India to a World Cup and South Africa to No. 1 in the Test rankings, remains a persuasive candidate, however, leaving Giles with a tricky decision to make over the coming days. An appointment is anticipated within a week or so.

Stewart is understood to have informed the ECB last weekend that he was unable to pursue his interest in the position having decided the commitment to touring was incompatible with his family responsibilities. He remains as Surrey's director of cricket.

Former Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Jonathan Martin will avoid prison time after reaching a plea deal Friday on charges related to a threatening post on his Instagram account in February 2018.

As part of the agreement, three felony charges against Martin will be dropped in two years if he attends scheduled psychotherapy sessions, alcohol counseling and psychiatric appointments.

The image on the post showed a shotgun and ammunition and tagged four accounts, including those belonging to former Dolphins teammates Richie Incognito and Mike Pouncey. It also included hashtags for Harvard-Westlake, where Martin went to high school in the Los Angeles area, and the Dolphins.

The caption read: "When you're a bully victim & a coward, your options are suicide, or revenge."

"I am thankful that this matter has finally come to a conclusion. I want to apologize to my high school alma mater for my reckless and selfish actions," Martin said in a statement Friday. "I am eager to put this matter fully in the rear view mirror and to continue forward with my life. I plan to eventually speak more candidly about mental health, substance abuse, and selfishness, and ultimately about perseverance & personal triumph."

A prosecutor said the people named in the post supported the plea deal's terms.

At the time of the social media post, Martin, 29, was detained for questioning and released, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department told ESPN. Nine days before the post, a gunman killed 17 people at a high school in Parkland, Florida.

Martin accused Incognito and Pouncey of bullying him in 2013, when they were teammates in Miami, which resulted in an NFL investigation. The investigation found that Incognito, Pouncey and John Jerry created a hostile working environment for Martin, who left the team in the middle of the season.

The NFL suspended Incognito for eight games after the investigation was completed.

Martin hasn't played in the NFL since 2015.

American thrower takes narrow victory in classic contest at IAAF World Champs in Doha

It was the most sensational and exciting and best quality shot contest in history.

Poor Darlan Romani threw 30 centimetres further than the previous championships record with a  22.53m throw and was not even close to the three medallists!

Olympic champion Ryan Crouser was first to break the championships record of 22.23m by Werner Gunthor way back in 1987 when he opened with a 22.36m but that did not even last the round as defending champion produced a stunning 22.90m to seemingly end the contest.

It was the longest throw since 1990 and moved him to fourth on the world all-time rankings.

Romani moved Crouser down to third with his 22.53m and Crouser’s third round response was another 22.36m but then the American moved back up to second with a 22.71m.

At this stage the 2015 world champion Joe Kovacs was having a solid series but was not a contender after throws of 20.90m, 21.63m, 21.24m, 21.95m, 21.94m but then incredibly with his last throw he launched the shot to 22.91m, a near metre improvement on his previous throws in this competition and nearly half a metre up on his PB.

Not only was it a championship record by all of a centimetre it moved him to equal third all time and dropped Walsh to fifth.

That was not the end though as Crouser had an amazing response and with a big roar his throw was sensationally measured as 22.90m to fall a centimetre short of Kovacs but level with Walsh but ahead on count-back.

Walsh had one chance of a comeback with the very last throw of the competition but despite it being another huge throw he could not remain in the circle and it was his fifth successive no throw. A few minutes earlier he was seemingly a stunning gold medallist and now he was having to settle for bronze.

Darrell Hill made it five Americans in the top five with a 21.65m throw.

Kovacs said: “It’s time to celebrate. I was hoping for a PB and then I saw Ryan and the others throwing far. I cannot be happier to win the gold medal. This is definitely the final which made history.”

Crouser said: “It was an unbelievable competition with fireworks in round six and I am happy to be part of. I wanted gold but to see Joe throw a PB with the last throw I can’t complain. A throw of 22.90m is unbelievable for me but I would not have thrown 22.90m if Joe had not thrown 22.91m.”

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Layne Riggs proved a point after qualifying on the outside pole for Saturday’s ValleyStar Credit Union 300 at Martinsville Speedway: he’s very much “for real.”

After listening to detractors claim that his strong performance in his Martinsville debut last year was “a fluke” or “good fortune” before a late-race incident, Riggs came back determined to set the record straight.

He did just that during two-lap time trials, posting a best time of 19.959 seconds (94.874 mph) in the No. 99 Puryear Tank Lines/Romeo Guest Construction Ford that was second only to polesitter Josh Berry.

Now, Riggs hopes he can convert that grid spot into a $32,000 victory in his second Martinsville start.

“It was a pretty sporty lap,” said Riggs. “We were happy with it, even if it wasn’t quite enough for the pole. It doesn’t matter where you start here, though. You just need some luck here and to be within striking distance at the end. We haven’t had much luck all year … a lot of freak things that have made it really rough.

“It took a toll on my confidence, but we’re starting to run well again and I think we can make something happen here under the lights. I’ve never gone a year without a victory, so hopefully we can keep that streak alive.”

Riggs was one of seven drivers Friday night who broke the old track record of 20.100 seconds, set by Stacy Puryear during qualifying for the 2018 edition of the ValleyStar Credit Union 300.

It was a display of speed that had Riggs grinning after what he called a “pretty fun” qualifying session.

“I think we just had a really good piece,” said Riggs. “We worked hard in the shop all week. I knew the rules had changed a lot the past couple of years; that’s opened up a whole lot more horsepower ranges. The cool conditions really help everybody just stay up on top of their game and be pinpoint accurate.

“The times are really close, but we were happy with our lap and we’ll see what we can do.”

Though Riggs had solid speed in testing last week at the Virginia paper clip, he said his car this weekend still behaved much differently than how it did in that practice, largely because of an engine change.

“It’s been a change, for sure. Last week I feel like our car was a lot different,” Riggs noted. “We had a different engine in it. We didn’t bring our fastest and sharpest bullet to that one … but we got our fresh engine in it, so we couldn’t really base anything from the test speed-wise with our car. We could just base handling and things like that. So we put our best motor we could in there, and it ended up shooting off with pretty fast speed.

“At the test, we ran a 20.05 and backed it up in practice earlier today with a 20.02, so I was pretty happy with those times.”

With qualifying in his rear-view mirror, Riggs now turns his focus to Saturday night’s 200-lap feature and how he’ll survive to be in contention at the end.

The 17-year-old son of former NASCAR driver Scott Riggs doesn’t have a major race win on his young resume yet, but he fully recognizes what walking out of Martinsville with a grandfather clock Saturday night would do for his stock.

“(Winning) this race would mean everything for me,” Layne Riggs said. “I’m not really a veteran, but I’ve been around a couple of years. This is my second-ever race at Martinsville Speedway. We had a pretty good piece last year and I feel the same this year.

“You can’t say I’m the winningest driver there is, so something like this would make it all worth it.”

And as for those who doubted him despite last year’s performance, Riggs had a message for them, too.

“We’re for real here. The car’s been good, surprisingly good. We’re going to be able to contend.”

DOVER, Del. – One week after earning his first NASCAR Xfinity Series pole at Charlotte Motor Speedway’s ROVAL, Chase Briscoe earned his second.

Briscoe topped NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying Saturday at Dover Int’l Speedway to earn the pole for the Drive Sober 200, the final race in the first round of the NASCAR Xfinity Series playoffs.

The driver of the No. 98 Ford Mustang circled Dover’s one-mile concrete oval in 22.894 seconds for a speed of 157.246 mph to claim the pole.

However, it wasn’t all good news for the Indiana native.

During his qualifying attempt Briscoe’s car was underpowered because of an engine misfire, with his Stewart-Haas Racing team believing an electrical issue to be the cause. The team was unable to fix the problem easily, forcing them to make unapproved adjustments to the car.

As a result, Briscoe forfeited his pole starting position for Saturday’s race and will start from the rear of the field.

“The motor was running once we got going, but it was under load over here. It was just missing a little bit,” Briscoe explained. “I’m not sure. It’s probably something electrical we think. Just a testament to all the awesome motors that Roush Yates brings that we weren’t even under full power and were able to get the pole.

“Hopefully we can find something little like a wire loose or something, but if not we’ll probably have to go to the back.”

Austin Cindric qualified second for Team Penske, with Briscoe’s teammate Cole Custer giving Ford a sweep of the top-three positions in qualifying. Custer will move up one row and start on the inside of row one as a result of Briscoe start at the rear.

Tyler Reddick and Harrison Burton completed the top-five.

Saturday’s Driver Sober 200 is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m.

Drive Sober 200 Starting Lineup

1. Chase Briscoe (Must Start At The Rear)
2. Austin Cindric
3. Cole Custer
4. Tyler Reddick
5. Harrison Burton
6. Christopher Bell
7. Noah Gragson
8. Justin Allgaier
9. Brandon Jones
10. Zane Smith
11. Justin Haley
12. Landon Cassill
13. Jeremy Clements
14. Ross Chastain
15. Ryan Sieg
16. Michael Annett
17. John Hunter Nemechek
18. Dillon Bassett
19. B.J. McLeod
20. Garrett Smithley
21. Brandon Brown
22. Bayley Currey
23. Stefan Parsons
24. Joe Nemechek
25. Gray Gaulding
26. Vinnie Miller
27. Timmy Hill
28. Ray Black Jr.
29. J.J. Yeley
30. Chad Finchum
31. Stephen Leicht
32. Carl Long
33. David Starr
34. Matt Mills
35. Josh Williams
36. Kyle Weatherman
37. Joey Gase
38. Mike Harmon

CONCORD, N.C. – DIRTVision has announced a far-reaching broadcast partnership establishing DIRTVision as the exclusive North American broadcast home for the Ultimate Sprintcar Championship, the Ultimate Speedway Challenge, Valvoline Raceway, Murray Machining & Sheds Murray Bridge Speedway, Hi-Tec Oils Speedway and other major events in Australia.

Coverage begins Oct. 12 with the first round of the Ultimate Speedway Challenge and run all the way through the winter months, peak season in Australia.  The Challenge features all three of Australia’s top divisions, delivering 410 Sprint Car, dirt Late Model and Midget triple headers.

While Australian Sprint Car racing’s import/export business has been well documented, dirt late model and midget racing is strong across the continent.  The DIRTVision schedule will also feature the Australian V8 Dirt Modified Title (Northeast Modifieds) from Valvoline Raceway February 21-22.

The Ultimate Sydney Speedweek will be broadcast in its entirety on DIRTVision, including six big nights of 410 Sprint Car racing from Valvoline Raceway between Dec. 28 and Jan. 11.

Ultimate Sprintcar Championship stars Sam Walsh, Robbie Farr, Matt Dumesny and more will share the track with current World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series points leader Brad Sweet, Ollies Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions Presented by Mobil 1 champion Aaron Reutzel and World of Outlaws Rookie of the Year contender Carson Macedo.

“We’re excited to add some of the best racing Australia has to offer to our schedule,” said Brian Dunlap, Director of Broadcast for DIRTVision. “For years the drivers we have watched and followed all summer have headed Down Under to race the greatest Australian Sprint Car divers at world class venues. We can’t wait to take the fans along for the ride at a time when many dirt tracks across America are covered in snow.”

With more than 30 races in total and 20 events from November through February alone, DIRTVision fans will be entertained throughout the winter. The entire schedule of Sprint Cars, Late Models, V-8 dirt Modifieds, Midgets (called Speedcars in Australia) and more will be available to both Late Model and Sprint Car FAST PASS subscribers.

The Ultimate Sprint Car Championship (USC) features three separate points battles, resulting in three champions: USC – New South Wales at the dirt palace that is Valvoline Raceway in Sydney, New South Wales (NSW); USC – South Australia at Murray Machining & Sheds Murray Bridge Speedway in Murray Bridge, South Australia (SA); and USC – Queensland at Hi-Tec Oils Speedway in Toowoomba, Queensland (QLD). USC races regularly draw anywhere from 20 to 60 sprint cars per event.

“The Ultimate Speedway Challenge, Ultimate Sprintcar Championship, and Valvoline Raceway, along with many of the other tracks and major events in Australia, deliver world class dirt track racing,” said Barry and Felicity Waldron, USC Owners. “Our teams are going to be fired up to know that DIRTVision fans across the pond will be watching and following their seasons. It’s a great opportunity for us to further prove that we have some of the greatest drivers on the planet.”

HEUSDEN-ZOLDER, Belgium – The battle for the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series ELITE 2 title will come down to the wire.

Before the final race of the season, Giorgio Maggi and Lasse Soerensen are separated by one point – the equivalent of half a position on track in the playoffs – in favor of Soerensen. Thanks to Soerensen’s spectacular win in Saturday’s race at Circuit Zolder, whoever finishes ahead of the other on Sunday will become the champion.

With five laps to go in a thrilling Saturday race at Circuit Zolder, Soerensen took over the lead from Maggi, completing a bold move on the outside in restart. Afterwards the Dane defended his position in a close six-car dash to the finish.

“It was a hell of a race, it’s always hard when you have to pass so many guys,” said Soerensen, who will start from pole position in Sunday’s race thanks to the fastest lap on Saturday. “I believed in myself and I knew we could do it in the team. Thanks to the guys at Dexwet-Df1 Racing, the car was fantastic and they made it a lot easier today. To stand here now in the championship battle with only one race left is amazing. I really believe I can win that title.”

Maggi started from pole and kept the lead in the early laps, while Soerensen fought his way back from sixth to fourth before the first caution of the race. The Dexwet-Df1 Racing driver moved up to second with a great restart and after another caution – the second and final one of the race – Maggi had to surrender the lead on turn two.

“It will be very close and interesting because the forecasted conditions will mix up everything,” said Maggi. “We were looking quite bad on Friday because we had some major issues but I think we are very strong in the rain, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow. At the start today, I was too far at the left and I also spun the tires. I was a little too kind and left Lasse too much space.”

Maggi’s teammate Martin Doubek ended up third, taking advantage of a last-lap mistake by Advait Deodhar, who lost his chances to earn his second podium of the season at turn 12. The Indian managed to finish fifth behind Vittorio Ghirelli’s No. 24 PK Carsport Chevrolet Camaro. The Italian rounded out the rookie trophy podium behind Soerensen and Maggi, while Soerensen’s teammate Justin Kunz closed the race in sixth ahead of Alessandro Brigatti.

Freddie Hemborg followed in eighth, edging Pierluigi Veronesi. Celebrating his 70th birthday this weekend, Michael Bleekemolen completed the top-10 and topped the Legend Trophy classification.

Due to Ian Eric Waden’s early retirement in the race, the Dutchman took over the lead in the classification dedicated to drivers aged 40 or more. Arianna Casoli, who also won the Lady Trophy, and Matthias Hauer rounded out the Legend Trophy podium behind Bleekemolen. For Hauer it was the first NASCAR Whelen Euro Series podium of his career.

The safety car was deployed for the first time on lap 3, when Hugo De Sadeleer ended up in the gravel trap at turn four. With 10 laps to go, the green flag was back in the air and Naveh Talor was forced to go to the pits due to a flat tire. One lap later the yellow flag flew again due to an incident involving Jesse Vartiainen, Waden and Pol van Pollaert.

HARRISBURG, N.C. — No one — and we mean no one — has ever accused Kenny Wallace of being a man of few words.

Keeping that in mind, it was certainly no surprise when our recent phone interview for a feature story that appears elsewhere in these pages produced considerably more words of wisdom than would fit in the allotted space. Instead of leaving portions of the interview on the proverbial cutting-room floor, we’ll use this space to share a few of Wallace’s thoughts on the state of short-track racing and something he learned this season about his priorities.

First, he discussed a topic that frustrates race fans across the country.

“I’ve got to be honest with you, so many of these race tracks are so poorly run — and I hate to say it but it’s the truth — most of these races don’t end until 11:30 or midnight,” Wallace said. “By the time these dirt races are done, everybody is gone. The fans immediately get into their passenger cars and leave.

“But we’ve had some highlights this year. For example, the track I own with Bob Sargent, Tony Stewart and Kenny Schrader — Macon Speedway — during the Summer Nationals, the whole event was over by 9:30,” Wallace added. “We ended up drinking beer until about 2 in the morning and we were there until the last fan left. We closed the place down.

“Typically, these dirt tracks really get it wrong. They think if the show runs longer, the fans like it. But in reality, they haven’t done a survey and they are wrong. If they would get these races over at a decent time, the fans would come to the pits and get to spend some time with the drivers. That’s one thing I wish these tracks would get right.”

Second, Wallace addres­sed the overall state of short-track racing and suggested it is probably time to rethink the concept of weekly racing.

“Here’s what I’ve learned. I learned that the special races are booming — they are skyrocketing,” Wallace said. “Look at the race we just had here 15 minutes from my house. On Saturday night, Aug. 3, we had the World of Outlaws sprint cars with the modifieds and the midgets at     I-55 Raceway in Pevely, Mo. — I ran second in the modified feature. It was standing-room only. They could hardly fit another human being in there, and the atmosphere was outrageously awesome.

“One month earlier, there might have been 700 people in the grandstands for a regular show, but the special races are drawing record crowds,” Wallace continued. “It leads me to believe that the local race fans want to do other things with their families. It would not be a bad thing if some of the local tracks ran every other week.

“I’ve been in conversations where fans say, ‘We want to go to the lake with our family,’ or ‘We’re taking that week off to go to Six Flags.’ Racing is healthy, but I think the game has changed. Racing every single weekend for five straight months, I think those days are gone.”

Finally, during his first season as a full-time short-track racer, Wallace took an inventory of his priorities.

“I did something horribly wrong this year that I’ll never do again,” he admitted. “We had a third birthday party for my grand­baby, Charlotte. It started out that the party was going to be from 11 to 1, but they changed the time and it started at 1. I ended up leaving the birthday party early because I had a race planned. I’ll never do that again. I’ll take off all day and not go racing. That was stupid on my part because family comes first.”

n The dirt-racing fraternity will once again visit our neighborhood Nov. 7-9 when The Dirt Track at Charlotte hosts the Can-Am World Finals, featuring the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series and the big-block modifieds of the Super DIRTcar Series.

Visit charlottemotorspeedway.com for full details.

BOSTON -- A year ago, the Boston Celtics entered training camp with championship expectations. This year, it remains to be seen just how good Boston can actually be.

"There are different kinds of questions [this year]," Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said Saturday before the team's annual open practice here at TD Garden. "I think that last year's questions were more based on, you know, how is it going to gel? There was not a question of how much talent we had.

"This year the question is, 'Are we good enough?'"

That very much is an open question -- particularly due to the departure of Al Horford, who signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia 76ers. That the Celtics were able to replace Kyrie Irving with Kemba Walker meant the loss of Irving -- who declared at this same event a year ago that he intended to re-sign with the Celtics this past summer, only instead to choose to join the rival Brooklyn Nets instead -- was minimized.

Signing Walker using cap space, however, meant that Boston had no way to retain Horford -- or to even find a reasonable replacement for him in free agency. So while Boston expects Walker to seamlessly step into Irving's shoes at the point, and hope Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum and Gordon Hayward all take significant strides forward from where they all were last season, how the Celtics go about filling the hole left by Horford, one of the league's most versatile big men, will determine exactly how Ainge's question about his team is answered.

"We had to replace Al Horford, who's a terrific player, and that's hard to do," Ainge said. "He was a 3-point shooter. He was a rim runner. He could defend multiple positions. And so he could do a lot of things on his own, and he was very versatile. But we're going to have to replace him with multiple players. There isn't a player like him that was available."

When asked what he thought would determine whether the Celtics are "good enough," Ainge had a number of things he'll be looking at to see just where Boston's season goes over the next several months.

"Can we make enough shots is always the key. But can we get the stops? Can we rebound the ball well enough? I think those are probably the biggest challenges," he said. "We've been good defensively over the last few years so I worry about our defensive taking a step backwards. We need to have everybody step up on defense."

One thing that would help the Celtics make the transition to a post-Horford world will be Hayward looking like the player he was before the gruesome injury he suffered six games into his first appearance as a Celtic on opening night in Cleveland in 2017.

Like Williams, Hayward has gotten lots of positive reviews for the work he's put in during the offseason, which he chose to spend here in Boston working out at the team's practice facility. But Ainge admitted he's concerned about expectations for Hayward's return performance this season getting ahead of what he can actually produce.

"I think right now there's been a lot of buzz about Gordon and his comeback and I'm worried that it's getting a little out of hand," Ainge said. "Like, I think he's Gordon. He's back to being Gordon. And we're very excited about that. I sometimes worry, like, 'Oh my gosh, they think it's somebody else.' But I'm excited about Gordon.

"Obviously statistics don't matter ... [But] Gordon, depending on how much defensive attention he's getting and who he's on the court with, I think that what I see in Gordon -- and what I've always seen in Gordon when he's been right -- is the ability to score, but also the ability to facilitate and create.

"Gordon is just a good basketball player. He can think, he can pass, he can shoot, he can create, he can defend, he can rebound. I mean, he's a complete player. And we need him to just be that. And we need lots of other guys to play up to their best. And I think we have a chance to be really good."

Saturday was the first time Ainge spoke to the media since training camp began, and one of the few times he's talked since the end of last season, when the Celtics fell far short of their championship expectations with a five-game loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals -- a finish that laid the groundwork for Irving and and Horford to go elsewhere.

But while others have been reflective about things they learned from last season, Ainge -- now about to enter his fifth decade in NBA life -- said there isn't much he hasn't seen at this point.

"I don't really think I learned anything new," he said with a smile. "There was a lot of things that we hoped wouldn't happen that we were worried could happen. But I've been around the game for 40 years so I think I've seen pretty much everything."

One thing that the way last year played out won't be doing, though, is placing pressure on Ainge's shoulders. When asked at the end of his press conference if he felt any pressure to keep up with the other teams in town -- all of whom have either one a title or been in their respective sport's championship series in the past couple of seasons -- Ainge quickly made it clear he did not.

"I feel more pressure over an eight-foot putt on the 18th hole for a $5 Nassau right now," he said with a smile. "I think that, listen, the championship standard in Boston is well documented. And we all know that. And that's what we love about this [city]. And we love the success of the other teams. And we love the success of the Boston Celtics and what they've done, and the people who have played here and been in uniforms here in our history.

"And so I think that that feeling of high expectations is always good for us."

Naomi Osaka will face world number one Ashleigh Barty in the China Open final after surging past defending champion Caroline Wozniacki.

Australia Open winner Osaka hit 30 winners in beating Wozniacki 6-4 6-2 in one hour 24 minutes in Beijing.

Barty, who won the French Open, earlier battled past Kiki Bertens 6-3 3-6 7-6 (9-7) in their semi-final on Saturday.

Sunday's final will be the fourth meeting between Japan's Osaka and Barty, with the Australian leading 2-1.

Osaka, 21, started strongly but Wozniacki held on until the ninth game, when Osaka broke and served out to claim the set.

The world number four, who hit five aces and saved all seven break points against her, broke the 29-year-old Dane twice in the second set as she raced to victory.

Osaka said she barely slept before the semi-final after ending US Open champion Bianca Andreescu's 17-match winning streak in the quarter-finals late on Friday.

"I went to sleep at 4:00 am, I woke up at 6:00 am, so solid two hours, I can't really sleep after my matches," she said.

"I just feel like my adrenaline's up more during the tougher matches so it makes it harder to sleep."

Barty, 23, had to save match point in a thrilling tie-break decider against the Netherlands' Bertens, also committing 52 unforced errors in a nervy showing.

The top seed dominated the first set only for Bertens, 27, win the second by the same score.

Bertens broke in the fifth game of the decider but could not serve out for the match as Barty hit back to take it to a tie-break.

The Australian trailed 3-0 in the tie-break but rallied to set up match point at 6-5, before Bertens won the next two to get a match point of her own.

But Barty drew level and reeled off the next two points to wrap up victory in two hours 20 minutes.

Barty credited a "massive growth" in her mental strength in playing decisive points.

"It's gone hand-in-hand with adding some new people to my team, trying to work with them behind the scenes," she said.

"Not just for my tennis - it's for my life, my health and wellbeing, as well, which has been the best thing.

"I have never been happier off the court, never been happier on the court."