Former World No. 1 Garbine Muguruza announces tennis retirement at 30

Garbine Muguruza also lifted the Wimbledon and French Open titles.

Garbiñe Muguruza, the powerful Spanish tennis player who reached the summit of the sport by winning Wimbledon and the French Open while also rising to World No. 1 in 2017, announced her retirement from professional tennis on Saturday at the age of 30.

Muguruza made the news official at a press conference in Madrid, bringing an end to a 12-year career that saw her climb to the pinnacle of the WTA rankings in 2017 after a series of marquee victories on the sport’s biggest stages.

“If, 25 years ago when I started hitting my first tennis balls, someone had told me that I would become a professional tennis player, that I would fulfil my dream of winning Roland Garros and Wimbledon, that I would become No.1 in the world and win the WTA Finals…I would have thought this person was crazy,” said the Venezuelan-born Muguruza.

Her crowning achievement came at the 2016 French Open, where she defeated Serena Williams in a lopsided final to become the first Spanish woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since Arantxa Sánchez Vicario triumphed at Roland Garros in 1998.

The following year, Muguruza won her second major on the lawns of the All England Club, getting the best of Venus Williams in the Wimbledon final. She would go on to ascend to the WTA’s No. 1 ranking later that season.

“Tennis has given me a lot in this first part of my life,” Muguruza reflected. “It has been a fantastic journey in which I have experienced unique situations. I have traveled all over the world and experienced many different cultures. I am tremendously grateful to all the people who have helped and accompanied me throughout this chapter.”

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In addition to her Grand Slam triumphs, Muguruza won three WTA 1000 titles and culminated her career by capturing the season-ending WTA Finals in 2021 in Guadalajara, defeating Anett Kontaveit.

She departs with a 449-238 career record in singles, having earned over $24.8 million in prize money. The former world No. 1’s final competitive match came in January at the Lyon Open.

“Garbiñe has competed with fierce determination, exemplary sportsmanship, and thrilled tennis fans with her exciting brand of play,” said WTA CEO Steve Simon. “A role model for young people in Spain, Latin America and around the world, she is a true champion of the sport.”

Muguruza’s retirement comes with the announcement that she has been named an ambassador for the Laureus World Sports Academy. She had previously worked with the non-profit Room to Read since 2017.

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