Agnieszka Radwanska retires from tennis

Former Wimbledon finalist Agnieszka Radwanska has announced she is retiring from tennis after a 13-year career.

The 29-year-old Pole, who reached a career-high ranking of No.2 in 2012, says she is “no longer able to train and play the way I used to.”

“This was not an easy decision,” she wrote in a post on Twitter.

“Unfortunately I am no longer able to train and play the way I used to, and recently my body can’t live up to my expectations. Taking into consideration my health and the heavy burdens of professional tennis, I have to concede that I’m not able to push my body to the limits required.”

Dear Friends, I’d like to share one of the most important decisions of my life. Special thanks to those with me through thick & thin: my parents, my sister and my best team: David, Tom, Krzysztof, Jason, my sponsors and partners – I am always thankful for what you’ve done for me. pic.twitter.com/Be1yvY4SUR

— Aga Radwanska (@ARadwanska) November 14, 2018

Radwanska won 20 WTA titles in her career; her best Grand Slam performances came at Wimbledon, where she reached the final in 2012 – losing to Serena Williams in three sets – and made semifinals in 2013 and ’15. She was a Wimbledon junior champion in 2005.

She was twice an Australian Open semifinalist (2014, 2016) as well as reaching four quarterfinals at Melbourne Park. She advanced to the Roland Garros quarterfinals in 2013.

Her biggest professional title came in Singapore in 2015, when she was victorious at the WTA Finals.

It was part of a trend of late career success; five of her final six WTA titles were won on Asian soil, the last of those coming at the prestigious Premier Mandatory event in Beijing.

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Radwanska was a hugely popular star in women’s tennis, and a consistent presence at the top of the game.

She finished in the year-end top 10 eight times – including for six straight years from 2011 to 2016 – and was voted the WTA Fan Favourite every year in that same span (2011-2016).

She is Poland’s greatest ever tennis player, becoming the first from her country to crack the top 10, earn $1 million, win a WTA title and reach a Grand Slam final in the Open Era.

Radwanska was also notable for her creative, unorthodox style of play. She frequently won WTA Hot Shot of the Month and Hot Shot of the Year awards and several videos on YouTube are dedicated to her shot-making prowess. Her improvised, behind-the-back volley winner at the Miami Open in 2013 has been viewed nearly four million times.

Radwanska says she’s not leaving tennis completely, adding “it’s time for new challenges, new ideas, equally as exciting as those on the tennis court, I hope.”