Professional tennis is losing another big name after Caroline Wozniacki ended her professional career back in January. Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova decided to follow Wozniacki’s footsteps and officially announce her retirement from tennis.
Sharapova revealed her decision in a piece she penned for Vogue and Vanity Fair magazines.
“Tennis — I’m saying goodbye,” she wrote before describing her experiences on Grand Slam tournaments and explaining her decision.
“Tennis showed me the world—and it showed me what I was made of,” she added at the end of the essay. “It’s how I tested myself and how I measured my growth. And so in whatever I might choose for my next chapter, my next mountain, I’ll still be pushing. I’ll still be climbing. I’ll still be growing.”
Sharapova retires after being eliminated in the first round of this year’s Australian Open. She played just one more match this season, losing that one as well.
After turning pro in 2001 as a 14-year-old, Maria Sharapova began her rapid rise in the tennis ranks. By 2004, she was already a Wimbledon champion, while topping the WTA rankings in 2005.
Sharapova went on to win four more Grand Slams, adding a US Open in 2006 and an Australian Open in 2008 to her collection, before finally topping French Open in 2012. Her last Grand Slam title came on Roland Garros in 2014.
In recent years, Sharapova’s career was plagued by injuries, which prevented her from making meaningful results on the tennis court. She also served a 15-months suspension in 2016 after testing positive for banned substances.
