Leaving a Void Sharapova, Wozniacki Retire From Tennis s we move into a new decade of tennis, the sport will be without two of its biggest stars from the previous decade. Maria Sharapova and Caroline Wozniacki both announced their retirements from the WTA Tour as each brought an end to their respective hall of fame careers. Sharapova retired by writing a heartfelt essay for Vogue and Vanity Fair. “How do you leave behind the only life you’ve ever known?” the essay begins. “How do you walk away from the court you’ve trained on since you were a little girl, the game that you love—one which brought you untold tears and unspeakable joys—a sport where you found a family, along with fans who rallied behind you for more than 28 years? I’m new to this, so please forgive me. Tennis—I’m saying goodbye.” Sharapova, 32, captured the first of her five Grand Slam titles when she was just 17-years-old at the 2004
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Wimbledon Championships. She would go on to win the US Open in 2006, the Australian Open in 2008, and the French Open in 2012 and 2014. The Russian would reach the top of the world rankings in 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2012, but in 2016, received a twoyear suspension by the ITF for testing positive for meldonium, a banned substance. The suspension was reduced to 15 months after the Court of Arbitration for Sport concluded there was “no significant fault” by her. But Sharapova walks away from the game as one if it’s all-time greats, and is ready to begin the next stage of her life. “Tennis showed me the world—and it showed me what I was made of. It’s how I tested myself and how I measured my growth,” she wrote. “And so in whatever I might choose for my next chapter, my next mountain, I’ll still be pushing. I’ll still be climbing. I’ll still be growing. Prior to this year’s Australian Open, Wozniacki announced that it would be
New York Tennis Magazine • March/April 2020 • NYTennisMag.com
the final tournament of her career. The former Aussie champion and two-time US Open finalist would reach the third round before falling to Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur. “I had a dream when I was kid. I wanted to win a Grand Slam, I wanted to be No. 1 in the world,” said Wozniacki. “People thought that I was crazy, being from a small country, but I made it happen. I worked so hard for it every single day. I’m very, very proud of that.” Wozniacki reached the US Open finals in 2009 and 2014, and lifted the Australian Open trophy in 2018. She won 30 career WTA titles in all, and finished the year as the top-ranked player in the world in both 2010 and 2011. “I’ve always told myself, when the time comes, that there are things away from tennis that I want to do more, then it’s time to be done,” said Wozniacki. “In recent months, I’ve realized that there is a lot more in life that I’d like to accomplish off the court.”
