Russian tennis star and five-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova on Wednesday announced her retirement from the game.
Sharapova took to Instagram and wrote: "Tennis showed me the world--and it showed me what I was made of. It's how I tested myself and how I measured my growth. And so in whatever I might choose for my next chapter, my next mountain, I'll still be pushing. I'll still be climbing. I'll still be growing. Tennis--I'm saying goodbye."
The veteran player also shared her childhood photo in which she can be seen holding a tennis racquet on a court. The 32-year-old last won a grand slam in 2014 when she clinched the French Open for the second time.
Sharapova burst onto the tennis scene as a 17-year-old in 2004 when she beat number one seed Serena Williams in the final of Wimbledon to claim her first grand slam.
In 2006, she clinched her second Grand Slam title as she won the US Open. She bagged her maiden Australian Open title in 2008. She was able to lift the French Open for two-time in 2012 and 2014.
She has won all the four Grand Slam titles in her tennis playing career. Her last appearance came at the 2020 Australian Open, where she was knocked out in the first round by Donna Vekic.
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