With a pair of signature slice backhands and a whipping cross court forehand that soared past Danielle Collins and dipped savagely into the court, Ash Barty signed off her Australian Open triumph in irrepressible style.

The roar of delight that followed would become an iconic moment in Australian tennis. The prevailing commentary over following days, as a carefree Barty enjoyed the celebrations, centred around who on the WTA Tour could rise to her level and how long her era of dominance would stretch.

Only those in her closest circle knew Barty, who played the ultimate poker face, was on the verge of a decision that would stun the sport. That stroke, executed with typical grace and precision, was likely to be her final flourish in a Grand Slam and - quite possibly - competitive tennis altogether.

In truth, by the time Barty lifted the silverware at Melbourne Park, her future had been playing on her mind since her Wimbledon breakthrough the previous English summer. As she breathed in the ovation at her home Slam, Barty knew she may have just crafted the perfect farewell note on a brilliant career.

“Yes and no,” Barty said with a wry smile on Thursday when asked if she knew that was her likely sign-off from the sport. “It was such an incredible moment to share with so many people in the crowd.

“That crowd, the final of the Australian Open was like nothing I have I’ve ever played in front of before. There is no perfect timing but this was our perfect way.”

No firm decision had yet been made but for months, Barty had been leaning more and more towards an early retirement. On Wednesday, that’s exactly what she announced, as she departed the professional ranks aged 25 and with her No.1 ranking intact.

A home tie in the Billie Jean Cup in April could have been her official farewell but when that was postponed after Australia was given a rails run to the final after Russia’s ban, Barty was smart enough to know final bows in sport don’t come much sweeter than her Australian Open victory.

“After Wimbledon, my perspective changed a lot,” Barty said. “And there was this beautiful challenge of trying to play the Australian Open and trying to win an Australian Open, which was always another goal of mine, and to do that as a team and to do that with the people that meant so much to me was incredible.”