The world’s top women’s tennis player Ashleigh Barty has stunned the sport by announcing her early retirement at the age of just 25. “Today is difficult and filled with emotion for me as I announce my retirement from tennis,” she said in a video posted on Instagram. The Australian leaves the sport less than two months after becoming the country’s first home-grown Australian Open champion in 44 years, and winning a Grand Slam tournament on three different surfaces. Barty has won 15 titles, including Wimbledon, played on grass, and the French Open, played on clay. “I know how much work it takes to bring the best out of yourself … I don’t have that in me any more,” she said in the video. “I don’t have the physical drive, the emotional want and everything it takes to challenge yourself at the very top level any more. I am spent.” Barty previously walked away from the game as a teenager in late 2014 after becoming disaffected by the Tour.
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Top-ranked Ash Barty retires from French Open with hip injury
Bothered by a painful hip, top-ranked Ash Barty retired Thursday from her second-round match at the French Open, leaving the clay-court Grand Slam tournament without any of the top three women in the rankings.
The 2019 champion trailed 6-1, 2-2 when she signaled that she couldn’t continue against Polish opponent Magda Linette on Court Philippe Chatrier.
“I was battling the pain, and it just became too severe, and like I said, was becoming unsafe,” Barty said of the injury that had flared up during training before the tournament.
In addition to Barty’s departure, No. 2 Naomi Osaka withdrew after the first round _ she said she is going to take a break from competition for mental health reasons _ and No. 3 Simona Halep pulled out before the tournament began because of a leg injury.
In the buildup to this year’s French Open, Barty played 13 matches on clay and won 11. She posted a record of 27-5 and won three singles titles before Roland Garros. But she was forced to retire in the quarterfinals in Rome in May because of an injury to her right arm. She said that injury had healed and did not hamper her in Paris.
“It’s heartbreaking,” Barty said. “We have had such a brilliant clay-court season, and to kind of get a little bit unlucky with timing, more than anything, to have something kind of acute happen over the weekend and just kind of run out of time against the clock is disappointing.”
The Australian started the match with her left thigh bandaged and it was immediately clear she could not move properly. Too slow to chase her opponent’s shots, she struggled in long rallies and with her first serve.