Five-time Grand Slam Champion, Maria Sharapova has on Wednesday announced her retirement from professional tennis, ending her 19-year-old career.
I’m new to this, so please forgive me.
Tennis—I’m saying goodbye," she said in a Vogue Magazine article.
The 32-year-old came into the tennis scene in 2004 after she defeated Serena Williams to win her first Grand Slam at 17 years old.
The Russian tennis star and her father arrived the US from Sochi in 1994 as refugees from the poison of Chernobyl.
She went on to win 5 grand slam titles, earned the World No.1 female tennis player and highest-paid female player for 11 years.
However, the two-year ban on her after she tested positive for the banned meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open was a setback in her career, despite the two-year ban was reduced to 15 months.
Speaking on her retirement, she said, "In giving my life to tennis, tennis gave me a life."
"I'll miss it every day. I'll miss the training and my daily routine: Waking up at dawn, lacing my left shoe before my right, and closing the court's gate before I hit my first ball of the day.
I'll miss my team, my coaches.
I'll miss the moments sitting with my father on the practice court bench.
The handshakes—win or lose—and the athletes, whether they knew it or not, who pushed me to be my best," Sharapova added.
"Looking back now, I realize that tennis has been my mountain," she said.
"My path has been filled with valleys and detours, but the views from its peak were incredible," she said.
"After 28 years and five Grand Slam titles, though, I'm ready to scale another mountain—to compete on a different type of terrain."
she had reoccurring shoulder injuries, which she termed as "nothing new"
At the time of her retirement, she ranked 373 in the world.
Her last appearance was at the 2020 Australian Open where she was knocked out of the tournament at the first round by Donna Vekic.
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