Swiss tennis great Martina Hingis announced her "definite" retirement on Thursday Oct 26,2017, signalling the end of a career which took her from 1990s teenage superstar to doubles world number one some 20 years later.
The 37-year-old "Swiss Miss" has retired twice before -- once after testing positive for a metabolite of cocaine -- but she said the ongoing WTA Finals in Singapore will be her last tournament
"I think now it's definite. It's different, because before I walked away thinking I might come back," Hingis told reporters after her 6-3, 6-2 doubles win alongside Chan Yung-Jan over Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Kveta Peschke.
"I couldn't ask for a better finish."
Hingis could end her career on a high in Singapore, with a semi-final looming against Timea Babos and Andrea Hlavackova. "We have a pretty decent chance. I think we are the ones to beat right now," she said.
Slovakian-born Hingis took the tennis world by storm when she won her first three major titles, the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open, in 1997 at the age of just 16, opening a period of dominance when she spent 209 weeks as world number one.
It was a run that inspired a young Roger Federer, the leading light of the group of Swiss players -- also including Stan Wawrinka and Belinda Bencic -- who followed Hingis onto the world stage.
'The time has come'
Hingis, coached by her mother, Melanie Molitor, had five Grand Slam singles titles to her name when injuries drove her into her first retirement in 2003, when she was just 22.
She returned two years later but the comeback was short-lived and Hingis stepped away from the sport again after failing a drugs test at Wimbledon in 2007.
But she has enjoyed considerable success since her reincarnation as a doubles specialist, and ends her career at the top of the rankings and with 20 major titles in doubles and mixed doubles.
"Here we are for the third, and final time," Hingis posted on Facebook. "Looking back now, it's hard to believe that almost exactly 23 years ago I made my professional debut.
"The years that followed have been some of the most rewarding years of my life, both personally and professionally, but I believe the time has come for me to retire, which I will be doing after my last match here in Singapore."
Hingis said she would remain involved in the sport, perhaps in a coaching capacity -- which could raise questions over a potential match-up with Federer.
"I'll always be part of the game of tennis," she said. "Somehow we will be connected. I will definitely take some time out. I have done coaching before. I can help my mom, her tennis school.
"I'm definitely not going to miss that day-in, day-out grind."
About Martina Hingis
*A Swiss citizen born in Kosice, Czechoslovakia (now in Slovakia) on Sept. 30, 1980 to tennis players Melanie Molitorova and Karol Hingis.
*Became the youngest Wimbledon champion aged 15 by winning the women's doubles title with Helena Sukova in 1996.
*Became the youngest grand slam singles champion in the 20th century by winning the Australian Open in 1997, aged 16. Also won Wimbledon and U.S. Open in the same year, becoming the first player since Steffi Graf in 1993 to reach finals of all four grand slams.
*In 1997 became the youngest world number one and spent 80 consecutive weeks at the top before ankle injury cost her the top ranking.
*Finished 2000 as world number one after claiming nine titles.
*She lost her number one ranking in 2001 after tearing ankle ligaments.
*Pulled out of German and Italian Opens and missed Wimbledon due to injury.
*Announced in October, 2002 she would take an indefinite break from tennis.
*Made a comeback at the Australian Open in 2006, reaching the quarter-finals before climbing to sixth in the world rankings.
*In November 2007, Hingis said she was under investigation after testing positive for cocaine. She announced her retirement for the second time but denied she had ever taken performance-enhancing drugs.
*Hingis was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2013 and announced that she was coming out of retirement to play a doubles tournament in California.
*Hingis paired with India's Leander Paes to win the mixed doubles crown at the 2015 Australian Open, her first grand slam title since capturing the mixed doubles in Melbourne in 2006.
*She won the women's doubles title at Wimbledon with India's Sania Mirza before clinching the mixed doubles crown with Paes the next day.
*She also claimed the women's doubles and mixed doubles titles at the U.S. Open to finish with five grand slam trophies in 2015.
*Completed her mixed doubles career grand slam with first title at Roland Garros alongside Paes.
*Played doubles with compatriot Timea Bacsinszky and won the silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
*Won the mixed doubles title with Britain's Jamie Murray at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 2017. She also lifted the doubles title at Flushing Meadows with Taiwan's Chan Yung-jan.
*Finished her career with 25 grand slam titles in singles and doubles
No comments:
Post a Comment