There was a certain aroma of farewell every time the tennis player of Guipuzcoan origin Garbiñe Muguruza, former world number 1 and last great jewel of this sport, opened a small window to her new life through social networks. The photos of her smelled like the salt of paradisiacal beaches instead of the sweat of the tennis courts. They tasted like tasty sweets instead of an isotonic drink. And they wore elegant dresses instead of sports kits. Now, that goodbye is final thirteen months after the athlete of Eibar descent decided to temporarily step away from the courts after taking her last rackets in Lyon.
Surely the motto he wears on his social networks, ‘Life is too big to play small’, was in his head when he dropped the bomb yesterday. She said at the time that she would return when she missed competing. And he hasn’t done it. It’s that simple. «I have been making the decision little by little. These months of rest have been key. I received it with open arms. I felt better and better and I didn’t miss the discipline of the life I led before. It hasn’t been in a day. “I have been realizing that I wanted to look at my next chapter and not so much that of tennis,” she justified during her appearance prior to the Laureus Awards, which will be presented in Madrid.
HIS GREATEST SUCCESS
Roland Garros 2016 The Spaniard defeated a myth like Serena Williams to be crowned on the clay of Paris.
Wimbledon 2017 Another Williams, Venus, was defeated in the cathedral of tennis with a rosco included in the second set.
2021 Masters Tournament The swan song of a career that aimed for more came against the Estonian Anett Kontaveit.
She says goodbye after winning great titles such as Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the Masters Cup. «It has been a long, beautiful career with a thousand anecdotes. I feel that the time has come to retire and open a new life. “I feel very young for that word, but I wanted to say it and that’s it,” she said. What began as a mental and physical break has ended in a clear decision to turn the page. To start a new life. And she hangs her racket satisfied with her career: «We all dream of winning Grand Slams, being number 1, being a teacher. I have achieved many dreams that I had as a child. But I don’t really know what it means to make history. “If it means winning 25 Grand Slams, I already knew that wasn’t it, but I have made my history.”
Just because he is hanging up his racket, Muguruza clarified, does not mean that there is no plan for the future. «Professional tennis and anything at the highest level deprives you of many things. I want to make up for that lost time and do normal things. I have plans to start a family, get married, have a dog… And stay involved with tennis and my sponsors. “I’m not a person who sits back, so things will come up.” And how do you see the sport you dedicated yourself to? «I usually watch tennis matches like when I played, but I have not gone back to a match. “I see it very well, with young and new girls,” he analyzed.
Muguruza and Serena Williams, in a Roland Garros match.
He picked up his first racket when he was three years old. And since then, a life dedicated to her ropes. Discipline, demanding training, diaries, travel, sports diet, pressure to win… Muguruza puts an end to all that at 30 years old. She has been the last Spaniard to win two of the major tournaments in the women’s category, also leading the world ranking. First, on the ground of Roland Garros in 2016. And a year later, on the grass of Wimbledon, “a unique moment.”
She was the heir of Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario and Conchita Martínez. She transcended sports and was a reference for top-level brands and all types. Adidas, Babolat, Rolex, global ambassador of BBVA… Then the downturn came on the courts. Some painful and unexpected defeats against rivals, a priori, inferior. Her desire to compete was fading. Cupid made an appearance in New York with her future husband, Arthur Borges, a period that she has taken advantage of to enjoy more time with her parents, Scarlet Blanc and José Antonio Muguruza, and her brothers, Igor and Asier .
Mental exhaustion
It was in October 2021 when she began to report that she was mentally and physically exhausted. She gave up playing with Spain in the then-called Federation Cup. She returned. And she did it with a victory at the Guadalajara Masters (Mexico) in November of that same year. But more defeats and the consequent stoppage came. Days passed and her name disappeared from the world ranking, where tennis players over 29 years of age among the top positions are anecdotal.
In his trophy case, in addition to the two ‘big ones’, he also boasts three victories in the Masters 1000 in Beijing (2015), Cincinnati (2017) and Dubai (2021); the WTA 500 in Chicago in 2021 and three WTA 250, in Hobart (2014) and Monterrey (2018 and 2019). Her last great triumph was in the 2021 WTA Finals, the Masters Cup, the culmination of one of her best seasons. Now Muguruza has decided to achieve another type of success. She trades the trophies for “making up for lost time.”
2024-04-20 21:52:06
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