Former world No. 1 Ashleigh Barty said she has no regrets over leaving tennis as lately she has been spending a lot of time with her family and doing activities that make her happy and fulfilled.
In late March, Barty stunned the tennis world when she retired from tennis at the age of 25.
Barty, who turned 26 this past weekend, didn’t lose a single match this season as she won Adelaide and the Australian Open before announcing her decision.
“I am just so happy, I didn’t need any reassurance but I have still felt that reassurance that I made the right decision,” Barty told The Sydney Morning Herald..
“I have spent so much time with my beautiful family and my nieces and nephew and you could not wipe the smile off my face the last few weeks.
“It’s been awesome.”
Barty announced the news just before Miami
Barty didn’t sign up to play any events in February but she was expected to return to action in Indian Wells and Miami.
However, that didn’t happen as Barty pulled out of Indian Wells and Miami, citing she was not where she needed to be in order to compete for the titles.
However, no one predicted what would happen two weeks later, when Barty retired from tennis.
“Today is difficult and filled with emotion for me as I announce my retirement from tennis. I wasn’t sure how to share this news with you so I asked my good friend @caseydellacqua to help me. I am so thankful for everything this sport has given me and leave feeling proud and fulfilled. Thank you to everyone who has supported me along the way, I’ll always be grateful for the lifelong memories that we created together,” Barty said in an Instagram post in late March.
Since retiring, Barty won a ladies golf event in Queensland and netted a $17 AUD prize money.