Just in: Ashleigh Barty, the current world No.1 women’s singles tennis player, retires from the sport at the age of 25
, making history as the first Australian woman to take home the competition’s top prize in 44 years.
“There’s no right way, there’s no wrong way, it’s just my way, and this is perfect for me to share it with you, to talk to you about it, with my team and my loved ones, that I’ll be retiring from tennis,” Barty said in a video posted to Instagram with her friend and former doubles partner, Casey Dellacqua. “It’s the first time I’ve actually said it out loud and it’s hard to say, but I’m so happy and so ready, and I just know at the moment in my heart that for me, as a person, this is right.
Despite the shock of the sports world, Barty added that she had been mulling the decision over for “a long time”; indeed, many have pointed to the breaks she has taken from playing in the past as foreshadowing her retirement today. In 2014, Barty announced her career was on indefinite pause at the age of 18 due to depression and homesickness, after which she embraced her burgeoning passion for cricket—with many speculating that she had the talent to play on a national level.
However, in a sentiment echoed by many other young female tennis players in recent years, Barty revealed that the pressure and media attention attached to competing at the sport’s highest levels had become disproportionate to her enjoyment of playing the game. “I know how much work it takes to bring the best out of yourself,” she said. “I’ve said it to my team multiple times, it’s just I don’t have that in me anymore.
“I’ll never stop loving tennis,” Barty continued. “It will always be a massive part of my life, but now I think it’s important that I get to enjoy the next phase of my life as Ash Barty the person, not Ash Barty the athlete.” The statement made for an impressively dignified exit from the sport—and you can be sure that whatever Barty does next, the world will be watching closely.
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