Maria Sharapova has announced her retirement from tennis at 32.
The five-time Grand Slam champion has been struggling with a shoulder problem and is currently 373th in the rankings.
Sharapova has only won three matches, since she reached the fourth round of last year’s Australian Open and was eliminated in the first round this year.
Sharapova, who won Wimbledon as a 17-year-old in 2004, tested positive for the drug meldonium in 2016 and was banned for two years.
It was later reduced to 15 months on appeal and she returned to action in April 2017.
“I’m new to this, so please forgive me. Tennis – I’m saying goodbye.
“Looking back now, I realise that tennis has been my mountain. My path has been filled with valleys and detours, but the views from its peak were incredible.
“After 28 years and five Grand Slam titles, though, I’m ready to scale another mountain-to compete on a different type of terrain,” Sharapova told Vanity Fair.
