Muguruza annuncia il suo ritiro dopo più di un anno senza giocare: “Voglio recuperare il tempo perduto”
Garbine Muguruza announces retirement from professional tennis
Garbine Muguruza has announced that she will no longer play tennis at a professional level. The news was expected, almost taken for granted, but the official announcement, made during an event of the Laureus Foundation in Madrid, is still a source of great sadness for what the Spanish athlete has shown throughout her career. And – above all, in a way – for what she could still have given. Muguruza leaves tennis with an enviable resume but one that could have been even richer given her talent and playing characteristics that distinguished her. However, Garbine has come to this decision after over a year without playing, with the firm conviction that it was the best choice for her life. And ultimately, what matters most is the serenity with which the Spanish player communicated her retirement.
Her last match will remain the one she lost in Lione against Linda Noskova on January 30 of last year. Following that and the other three defeats with which she had started 2023, the former world number one opted for a break to rediscover herself. Garbine discovered that she no longer needed tennis, finding a sort of nirvana in the closeness of her family (especially her husband Arthur Borges) and friends.
In addition to her first place in the rankings, reached in September 2017 and held for four weeks, the most important results of her career are undoubtedly the two Grand Slam titles she won: Roland Garros in 2016 and Wimbledon in 2017. In the two finals, she defeated first Serena and then Venus Williams, thus becoming the only one capable of beating them both in matches where a major title was at stake. Garbine also won eight other titles, including the 2021 Finals in Guadalajara. She won a lot in a short time and could have achieved even more.
In short, one could say that at just 30 years old, one of the strongest female players of the 2010s is retiring, second only to Arantxa Sánchez Vicario (who won four Slams) in the history of Spanish women’s tennis. Her former colleague and compatriot Paula Badosa bid her farewell saying, “You have been the mirror in which I looked at myself as a child. Thank you Garbi for giving so much to Spanish tennis. It was a pleasure to share these years with you. Good life, you deserve it.”
Garbine meanwhile said, “It has been a long and beautiful career. I feel that the time has come for me to retire, to open a new chapter in my life. The word ‘retirement’ is strong: I am still 30 years old, I feel too young to use such a word, but I wanted to be direct because I was quite nervous, now I feel good! If they had told me that I would achieve so much, I would have signed up for it: what I am most proud of is having endured the tough times and also the good ones because they can make you feel lost.”
The Venezuelan-born Spaniard then explained her decision and her future plans: “When I stopped, I appreciated the rest and with each passing day, I felt better. I did not miss the discipline and the difficulties of the life I had before. It was a gradual process: little by little, I understood that what I desire most is to look at my next chapter. Professional tennis deprives you of many things. In a sense, I want to make up for lost time, do common things like being with my family and friends. I would like to start a family, get married, have a dog… I want to continue to be involved in the world of tennis, I have commented on some matches and done various activities with my sponsors… I am certainly not a person who likes to stay still doing nothing!”
From a purely tennis perspective, it remains a shame. From a human perspective, all one can do is be happy for her and wish her the best for her new life.
