The No. 1 tennis player in the world is calling it a career. Ash Barty took to Instagram on Wednesday to announce her retirement from professional tennis at 25 years old. This announcement comes two months after Barty won the Australian Open for her third Grand Slam singles title.
“Today is difficult and filled with emotion for me as I announce my retirement from tennis,” Barty wrote in the Instagram post. “I wasn’t sure how to share this news with you so I asked my good friend [Casey Dellacqua] to help me. I am so thankful for everything this sport has given me and leave feeling proud and fulfilled. Thank you to everyone who has supported me along the way, I’ll always be grateful for the lifelong memories that we created together.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
In the six-minute video, Barty said it was time to “chase other dreams” and mentioned she no longer feels compelled to be the best at tennis. In November, Barty announced her engagement to trainee golf professional Garry Kissick after dating for five years.
“It’s the first time I’ve actually said it out loud, and yeah, it’s hard to say,” Barty said of her decision to retire, per ESPN. “I don’t have the physical drive, the emotional want and everything it takes to challenge yourself at the very top of the level any more. I am spent.” Barty has walked away from tennis before. She left the tour for two years in 2014 because she burned out. During her time away from tennis, Barty played professional cricket.
“I know I’ve done this before,” Barty said in the video, “but in a very different feeling. I’m so grateful to everything that tennis has given me. It’s given me all of my dreams, plus more, but I know that the time is right now for me to step away and chase other dreams and to, yeah, put the rackets down.”
Barty won her first Grand Slam singles title in 2019 as she claimed the French Open Championship. She won Wimbledon last year before taking home the Australian Open title in January. She also won the US Open Doubles title in 2018 with CoCo Vandeweghe. Last year, Barty took home the bronze medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics for mixed doubles with John Peers.
