Spanish tennis star and former women's World No.1 Gabrine Muguruza officially announced her retirement from her professional career on Saturday, April 20.
Muguraza has been out of action since January 2023 after losing four matches on the trot and decided to take a break from the sport, with no return date set at the time. It's been a over year since the two-time Grand Slam champion took a break from tennis, leaving the fans curious about her return to the court.
However, Gabrine Muguruza gave a shocking news to the fans by announcing her retirement from the sport at the age of 30. Speaking at the press conference at the Laureus Awards, Muguruza said that time has come to bid adieu to the sport, adding that she took the decision by having little by little.
"The time has come to say goodbye. It has been a long and beautiful career, but I feel the time has come to retire." Muguruza said.
"It's a decision that I've been taking little by little." she added.
Gabrine Muguruza's last appearance on the court was at the Lyon Open, where she lost to Linda Noskova in the first round before taking a break from the sport. A long break from tennis led to speculation about the Venezuela-born player future in the sport and whether she would return to competitive tennis.
'Welcomed the break with open arms': Gabrine Muguruza
Gabrine Muguruza embraced her break from the sport with open arms, adding that she didn't miss the discipline and difficulty of life she had before.
"When I stopped competing, I returned home and I welcomed the break with open arms. Every day that went by I felt better and I didn't miss the discipline and the difficulty of my life before, so it has been a progressive thing." the former World No.1 said.
Muguruza made her professional debut at the age of 17 at the Miami Open and went on to play 686 matches, out of which she won 449 games. In 2015, the 30-year-old reached her first Grand Slam Final at the Wimbledon, where he lost to Serena Williams.
Gabrine Muguruza finished her career with 10 titles, including two majors at French Open (2016) and Wimbledon (2017) and a WTA Tour Finals title in 2021.
