Ashleigh Barty has been one of the most consistent players on the women’s tour currently. She has ruled the game over the past years. She had a fantastic year, to begin with, winning the Australian Open. However, in a sensational turn of events, World Number 1 has announced shock retirement from the game.

This comes as a huge shock to the tennis world, especially considering the fact that she was only 25 years old and in her prime. However, she has suffered from health issues lately, which could be one of the reasons for this shocking and heartbreaking news.

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Ashleigh Barty gives details of her retirement

The Australian took to Instagram to announce the news of her retirement from the sport. She said, “Today is difficult and filled with emotion for me as I announce my retirement from tennis. I wasn’t sure how to share this news with you so I asked my good friend Casey Dellacqua to help me.”

Further, she added, “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.”

Barty’s tennis career

The Australian had a memorable career in tennis, although it lasted shorter than expected. Turning professional in 2010, she dominated in both the singles as well as doubles. She caught eyeballs when she won the Roland-Garros title in 2019. She defeated Marketa Vondrousova in the summit clash of that tournament to win her maiden Grand Slam title.

Last year, she lifted the Wimbledon trophy, defeating Karolina Pliskova in the finals. She began this year on a bang, winning the Australian Open title without dropping a set.

To add to her singles achievements, Barty also won the 2018 US Open women’s doubles title, partnering with Coco Vandeweghe. Barty reached a career-high ranking of one in singles and five in doubles.

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Recently, she skipped the ‘Sunshine Double’ owing to health issues. While the news of her retirement is difficult to digest, considering she was in top form, we wish Barty all the good luck in her future endeavors.