ASHLEIGH BARTEY

World Number 1 Makes Shock Call To Quit Tennis

    World number one Ashleigh Barty stunned the tennis world by announcing her early retirement from the sport at the age of just 25. Her announcement comes right as she’s at the top of her game and the sport as a whole. Barty dropped the bombshell weeks after becoming the first home-grown champion of the Australian Open in 44 years, joining tennis royalty's most exclusive club with a Grand Slam crown on three different surfaces - the French Open in 2019, Wimbledon in 2021 and the Australian Open this year.

      In a shock retirement announcement, Barty spoke about not having “the physical drive” or “the emotional want” to play the sport at the highest level. Barty was not just retiring but was also taking an important step towards the normalisation of putting personal wellbeing above glittering trophies and millions in prize money. By choosing to dance to the beat of her own drum, Barty was telling the world that one's goals can be different from the standards by which success is measured, on the tennis court or in any other field.

         Barty’s current reign as No.1 is the fourth-longest streak in the history of the Hologic WTA Tour, behind Steffi Graf (186 weeks), Serena Williams (186) and Martina Navratilova (156). Her 121 total weeks are No.7 all time. Barty becomes the second reigning World No.1 ranked woman to retire while on top, following Justine Henin, who retired on in May of 2008, after 61 consecutive weeks at No.1. Henin returned to play two years later. Kim Clijsters retired for the first time in 2007 at the age of 23 and ranked No.4. She returned two years later, won back-to-back US Open titles, then retired a second time from 2012-20. Clijsters is currently an active player. Eleven-time Grand Slam champion Bjorn Borg retired at the age of 26 in 1983, then came back to play from 1991-93. Widely seen as one of the most respected and loved players on tour, Barty rapidly became the best, with her dizzying array of slices, pinpoint serving and seamless forehand typifying her all-round game.

        Barty has been ranked No 1 for over a hundred weeks, and has coveted Grand Slams trophies in her cabinet. All this was achieved during her second coming to tennis after she quit at 18 and played cricket in the Women’s Big Bash League. “I think it’s important that I get to enjoy the next phase of my life as Ash Barty the person, not as Ash Barty the athlete,” she said. Even if she doesn’t hold a racquet again, she will remain an inspiration for those who want to find a way off the treadmill, in sport and in life. 

          It is not always that sports players leave behind a legacy. Ash Barty has taught us many things in the way she has retired. Her timing gives her the opportunity to script new chapters in her life. She teaches us how to balance work and life. In all probability, Barty shall have a fairytale wedding at the end of the year. The greatest thing about Ashleigh Barty is that she did not succumb to the quest for more glory that most top–notch elite athletes crave. She declared to the world that she no longer was interested in doing the 38 weeks per year globe-trotting and that she had better things to do. She had the courage to say no to the hotel life. She has made a huge statement in the way she has left the game. 

         The French Open, Wimbledon and Australian Open champion and No.1 player in the world is not interested in doing these things all over again. She had the courage to say that she does not have the will or the energy to carry on as an elite athlete. Barty always wished she could claim a small part in what is a very big story of Australian tennis. The fact is that she went much beyond that. In many ways, she was the answer to the tennis lovers of her nation in finding a champion after a gap of several years. The hope was on the men’s side, but it came in the form of a diminutive woman who played sports at the highest level on her own terms.