It's over, Garbiñe Muguruza, who had left the circuit a long time ago, announced this Saturday his definitive retirement from the slopes. “The time has come to say goodbye,” the Spaniard began at a press conference in Madrid, on the occasion of the Laureus awards that will be presented this Monday in the capital.
«It has been a long, beautiful career, full of moments, anecdotes… I feel that the time has come to retire, to open this new chapter of my life as athletes often say. The word retire sounds very strong because I am thirty years old and to use a word like that… but I wanted to be brief and say it because I was nervous,” added Muguruza.
The Spaniard is leaving professional tennis after fifteen months of vacation and with one of the most important resumes in Spanish sport. During her career, Muguruza won two Grand Slams, Roland Garros 2016 and Wimbledon 2017, was number one for four weeks, won the Masters Tournament in 2021, being the only Spaniard to achieve it, and added a total of ten titles and 23 million euros earned. After Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario, Muguruza is the best tennis player in the history of Spain.
«It has been 25 years since I started playing tennis… If they had told me that I would achieve so many wins, I would have signed it. I leave very proud of having achieved it, of having resisted. When you set such a big goal, resisting moments of doubt is what makes you most proud. Also resist the good moments, which can throw you off. It has been a very good story. We all dream of Grand Slams, being number one, being a teacher. “I have achieved many dreams that I had as a child,” she said during the appearance in which she made public her farewell to tennis.
The Spaniard competed for the last time in the Lyon tournament, in January 2023, and took a vacation to disconnect, because the results were not going as desired. At the time of the disconnection, Muguruza had not won a match since September 2022 and was close to leaving the select group of the 100 best tennis players in the world. Her vacation was lengthening to the point that it was an open secret that she would never return to the circuit again.
«I have been making the decision little by little. These months have been key. When I stopped competing and returned home I said well, I'm going to rest and see how I feel. There I received rest with open arms and with each passing day I felt better, better and better and I did not miss the discipline and difficulty of the life I led before. It has been something progressive. “I have realized that I want to look at my next chapter more than tennis,” said the player. “I needed to stop, rest and it was the answer to what I felt,” she added.
The future
Regarding the future, Muguruza, who follows in the footsteps of other tennis players such as Ana Ivanovic and Ashleigh Barty, who hung up their racket at a young age, assured that she has plans to have a family, but that she intends to continue being involved in tennis in some way. «I have not been present at any game, but I usually watch games and follow my teammates. I've been doing new things, I've been commentating, involved with my sponsors… Little things will come up,” she explained.
Among all the memories of her sporting career, Muguruza was left with the final she won against Venus Williams at Wimbledon 2017, when she joined Conchita Martínez as the only Spaniards to triumph at the All England Club. “Choosing one would be impossible, because there have been many good ones, but I think the Wimbledon final is a unique moment, it is the history of tennis that was formed at Wimbledon and winning it is the most you can achieve,” she recalled.
Paula Badosa, Muguruza's partner in the last years on the circuit, also dedicated a few words to the former player when she heard the news. «You were the mirror where I looked at myself since I was little. Thank you, Garbi, for giving so much to Spanish tennis. It was a pleasure to share these years with you. Happy life, you deserve it,” she said.
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