Ashleigh Barty played the "best match of her life" to crush Caroline Garcia 6-0, 6-0 and haul Australia back into contention at the Fed Cup final Saturday after France's Kristina Mladenovic whipped Ajla Tomljanovic.
The world number one, fresh from winning the WTA Finals in China, came on court in Perth under pressure after the nervous Tomljanovic was thrashed 6-1, 6-1.
But in searing 38 Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) heat she kept her cool to embarrass a stunned Garcia in a rare double bagel, with the Frenchwoman having no answers to the Barty armoury in front of 13,000 fans.
It left the tie evenly poised at 1-1 ahead of Sunday's reverse singles and a doubles clash if needed, with Australia targeting an eighth title and first in 45 years, while France are seeking a third, their first since 2003.
"This is remarkable, I couldn't have asked for a more perfect match. I think that's the best tennis match I've ever played in my life," said Barty.
"I felt like I served really well, made a lot of returns. Most importantly I played the big points well. I really wanted to assert myself and I was able to do that really well today."
"Today she just played a very good match from the first point to the last one."
- 'Almost perfect' -
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"I really did almost the perfect match, I was really in the zone. I love these sort of matches, the bigger the pressure, the more special the event."