Ashleigh Barty, the world No. 1 women’s tennis player who won the Australian Open in January, announced that she was retiring.
Barty, who turns 26 next month, posted a video to Instagram announcing her decision through a conversation with her Australian compatriot Casey Dellacqua, a retired player and her former doubles partner. Barty said she would also hold a news conference.
She won 15 career singles titles, including three at Grand Slam tournaments: She won the French Open in 2019, Wimbledon in 2021 and the Australian Open this year.
“It’s hard to say but I’m so happy and I’m so ready,” Barty said in the video. “And I just know at the moment in my heart for me as a person, this is right.”
She added, “I’m so grateful to everything that tennis has given me. It’s given me all of my dreams, plus more, but I know that the time is right now for me to step away and chase other dreams and to put the rackets down.”
This is a breaking story and will be updated.
