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#ThankYouMaria Trends As Maria Sharapova Announces Her Retirement From Tennis

byAkanksha Agarwal
27th February 2020
2 minute read

At the age of 17, Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova beat Serena Williams to win her first Grand Slam at Wimbledon in 2004. Since then her career in the sport has been nothing short of iconic. She won 36 singles titles, five grand slam titles and is the third-highest earning female athlete, reports CNN.

Persevering through a 15-month ban for testing positive for meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open and many shoulder injuries, the 32-year-old has now announced her retirement from the game.

BBC quoted her saying, “How do you leave behind the only life you’ve ever known? How do you walk away from the courts you’ve trained on since you were a little girl, the game that you love—one which brought you untold tears and unspeakable joys—a sport where you found a family, along with fans who rallied behind you for more than 28 years? I’m new to this, so please forgive me. Tennis—I’m saying goodbye.”

The Times of India quoted her adding,

“In giving my life to tennis, tennis gave me a life. I’ll miss it every day. I’ll miss the training and my daily routine: Waking up at dawn, lacing my left shoe before my right, and closing the court’s gate before I hit my first ball of the day. I’ll miss my team, my coaches. I’ll miss the moments sitting with my father on the practice court bench. The handshakes—win or lose—and the athletes, whether they knew it or not, who pushed me to be my best.”

“That relentless chase for victories, though? That won’t ever diminish. No matter what lies ahead, I will apply the same focus, the same work ethic, and all of the lessons I’ve learned along the way.”

Her boyfriend Alexander Gilkes took to Instagram to say, “To the kindest and most professional person I know, here is to you Maria, and all that awaits you in your next chapter! May you continue to inspire us all with your deep humility, self-deprecation, strength, and focus. As a remarkable first chapter closes with so many extraordinary fetes, we look forward to all that you will accomplish with equal grit in the years to come. Proudly and lovingly.”

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To the kindest and most professional person I know, here is to you Maria, and all that awaits you in your next chapter! May you continue to inspire us all with your deep humility, self-deprecation, strength and focus. As a remarkable first chapter closes with so many extraordinary feats, we look forward to all that you will accomplish with equal grit and grace in the years to come. Proudly and lovingly, xx 🐻 ——— “How do you leave behind the only life you’ve ever known? How do you walk away from the courts you’ve trained on since you were a little girl, the game that you love—one which brought you untold tears and unspeakable joys—a sport where you found a family, along with fans who rallied behind you for more than 28 years? I’m new to this, so please forgive me. Tennis—I’m saying goodbye.”

A post shared by Alexander Gilkes (@gilkesa) on

Tennis fans across the globe are sharing their favourite Masha moments with #MissYouMaria and sending good wishes to the champion with #ThankYouMaria. It is truly the end of an era, don’t you think?

https://twitter.com/shreyaaa21/status/1232686890966568961

Earlier, 46-year-old Leander Paes announced that 2020 will be his farewell year. We wish both of them all the very best for the future!

Cover Image Source – left, right

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