March 22, (THEWILL) – Ashleigh Barty, Australian professional tennis player and current world number one, has announced her retirement at the age of 25 and at the very height of her game.
Barty, who cited the achievement of her tennis goals as well as tiredness with the demands of being on Tour as reasons for her decision, has been at the top of women’s tennis ranking since 2019, when she usurped the top spot from Japan’s Naomi Osaka.
She retires with 15 Grand Slam singles championships, less than two months after winning the Australian Open, her third Grand Slam victory after winning Wimbledon in 2021 and the French Open in 2019.
In a video of an interview she had with her close friend and former doubles partner Casey Dellacqua, which was shared via her official Instagram account, Barty explained: “I know how much work it takes to bring the best out of yourself … I don’t have that in me anymore.
“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.”
It is Barty’s second retirement from the sport, after quitting as a teenager in late 2014 after becoming dissatisfied with the Tour.
She returned in 2016 and quickly ascended in the rankings, winning international acclaim for her great tennis and fans’ admiration for her unfailing good sportsmanship and laid-back demeanour.
She was the world number one for a total of 121 weeks and was set for even greater success in the game’s major championships. She never made it a secret, however, that she despised touring and struggled with homesickness.
She clarified her perspective in the video, saying: “Ash Barty the person has so many dreams she wants to chase after that don’t necessarily involve travelling the world, being away from my family, being away from my home, which is where I’ve always wanted to be.
“I’ll never, ever stop loving tennis, it’s been a massive part of my life, but I think it’s important that I get to enjoy the next part of my life as Ash Barty the person, not Ash Barty the athlete.”
After turning professional as a youngster, Barty battled from depression on the Tour, prompting her to resign and briefly reinvent herself as a professional cricketer in her native state of Queensland.
When the COVID-19 epidemic ended elite tennis in 2020, she took nearly a year off to spend time with her family instead of returning immediately.
“I know I’ve done this before, but in a different feeling,” she said. “I’m so grateful for tennis, it’s given me all of my dreams, plus more, but I know the time is right now for me to step away and chase other dreams and to put the racquets down.”
She retires with nearly $24 million in career prize money and as a national hero after ending a 44-year wait for an Australian Open winner by defeating American Danielle Collins in the final in January.
Barty has become an inspiration for her country’s Indigenous community as the second Aboriginal Australian to win a Grand Slam title, following in the footsteps of the legendary Evonne Goolagong Cawley.
Players and officials paid respect to Barty when she dropped the shocking announcement.
Veteran Scot Andy Murray remarked: “Happy for @ashbarty, gutted for tennis. What a player.”
In the esteemed opinion of WTA boss Steve Simon, Barty always led by example “through the unwavering professionalism and sportsmanship she brought to every match.
“With her accomplishments at the Grand Slams, WTA Finals, and reaching the pinnacle ranking of No.1 in the world, she has clearly established herself as one the great champions of the WTA.”
Her decision to retire mirrors that of Justine Henin, who retired in 2008 as the world number one with seven Grand Slam victories also at the age of 25. In 2010, Henin came out of retirement, spurred by the comeback of fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters.
Clijsters, the 2005 U.S. Open champion, retired at the age of 23 in 2007, but returned two years later to win three more Grand Slam titles.
Anthony Albanese, the leader of the Australian Labour Party tweeted about Bartycs retirement: “An inspiration, a magician on the court, a champion of Wimbledon and the Australian Open – World Number One. As you climbed to the very top, you lifted us all.
“Congratulations to Ash Barty on a magnificent career.”
Australia’s gold-winning Paralympic tennis player Dylan Alcott posted: “Ash Barty. Amazing tennis player but even better person. A champion in every sense of the word. Very proud of you mate.”
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
