Former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki Will Retire after 2020 Australian Open

By
Benjamin T
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Caroline Wozniacki at French Open 2019. Photo by Rob Prange/REX/Shutterstock

Danish tennis player Caroline Wozniacki, who was the No.1 player in the world at one point, is walking away from the sport. Wozniacki announced on Friday that she will be retiring from professional tennis after the 2020 Australian Open.

Wozniacki, who turned 29 in July, made the announcement during her appearance on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” while also confirming the news on social media.

“Today I am announcing that I will be retiring from professional tennis after the Australian Open in January,” Wozniacki wrote on Instagram while posting a photo of herself from her career beginnings. “This has nothing to do with my health and this isn’t a goodbye, I look forward to sharing my exciting journey ahead with all of you!”

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I’ve played professionally since I was 15 years old. In that time I’ve experienced an amazing first chapter of my life. With 30 WTA singles titles, a world #1 ranking for 71 weeks, a WTA Finals victory, 3 Olympics, including carrying the flag for my native Denmark, and winning the 2018 Australian Open Grand slam championship, I’ve accomplished everything I could ever dream of on the court. I’ve always told myself, when the time comes, that there are things away from tennis that I want to do more, then it’s time to be done. In recent months, I’ve realized that there is a lot more in life that I’d like to accomplish off the court. Getting married to David was one of those goals and starting a family with him while continuing to travel the world and helping raise awareness about rheumatoid arthritis (project upcoming) are all passions of mine moving forward. So with that, today I am announcing that I will be retiring from professional tennis after the Australian Open in January. This has nothing to do with my health and this isn’t a goodbye, I look forward to sharing my exciting journey ahead with all of you! Finally, I want to thank with all my heart, the fans, my friends, my sponsors, my team, especially my father as my coach, my husband, and my family for decades of support! Without all of you I could have never have done this!

A post shared by Caroline Wozniacki (@carowozniacki) on

Although Wozniacki said that the retirement decision doesn’t have anything to do with her health, the truth is that her 2019 campaign was derailed by several injuries. As a result, she only played 35 matches this year and failed to go past the third round at Grand Slams. Her last appearance on the tennis court was China Open semifinals, where she lost to Naomi Osaka.

Wozniacki won 30 WTA titles during her career including Australian Open win in 2018. She reached US Open finals twice in her career as well, while being the top-ranked tennis player in the world on two occasions, in 2010 and 2011.