Resounding announcement in the world of tennis: just under two months after victory in Melbourne at the Australian Open, Ashleigh Barty, number one in the WTA rankings, retires at just 25 years old.
The champion posted a video on Instagram: "Today is a difficult and exciting day for me because I am announcing my retirement from tennis - said the Australian - I am so happy and ready and I am aware, inside me I know that it is the right choice for me as a person. I no longer have the emotional desire to compete at the highest level. " She specified that she was "grateful to tennis, which made me realize all my dreams, but I know it's time to hang up and pursue other dreams".
"I had been thinking about it for a long time - he continued -. The victory at Wimbledon last year changed me a lot as a person and as an athlete. I thought about it a lot after Wimbledon, I talked about it to my team, but I felt that something was missing, that I wasn't completely satisfied. Then came the challenge of the Australian Open, and I think it was the perfect way to celebrate the wonderful journey of my tennis career. "
305 wins and 102 defeats are the numbers of the champion: "I will never stop loving tennis, it has been a fundamental part of my life and always will be, but now I want to enjoy the next chapter of my life as Ash Barty the person, and not Ash Barty the athlete ”.
(Unioneonline / ss)