Tennis legend Ash Barty announced her shock retirement from the sport at only 25 years old on Wednesday.
She announced the swerve no one saw coming in an Instagram post.
Barty gave a little more insight into why she decided to retire during a press conference on Thursday.
“I’m excited for what’s next for my next chapter as Ash Barty the person, not the athlete,” she said.
“I will forever be connected to tennis. I’ll never stop loving the sport and I’ll never stop hitting tennis balls, I just won’t be doing it selfishly for me to try and progress my career, it’ll be for different reasons.”
“I can’t wait to get out there with young girls and boys and contribute in different ways, I’m really excited to have more time to do that.”
She also spoke about how important it was for her to get out there and support young Indigenous Australians looking to get into the sport.
“I know my contribution with the Aboriginal and Indigenous side of our sport will only grow,” she said.
“I’m really excited for that, I’m really excited to have the opportunity to give Indigenous youth and Aboriginal youth around our nation more opportunity to get into the sport.
“That’s something that we’ll work on down the track but I am excited to spend more time in that space.”
She continued speaking about how she has been fortunate enough to be given so many opportunities from tennis, but now is the time to give back.
“I’m ready to really give back in ways that I’m passionate about and visiting Uluru and being up in the community was just incredible,” she said.
“That’s what lights me up inside. That’s what makes me happy, and we have done a few of those trips now and I can’t wait to do a few more.”
In her retirement video posted to Insta, Barty had an emotional chat with her doubles partner and close friend Casey Dellacqua about leaving the game. I’m not crying, you’re crying.
“Today is difficult and filled with emotion for me as I announce my retirement from tennis,” Barty wrote in the caption.
“I wasn’t sure how to share this news with you so I asked my good friend @caseydellacqua to help me.
“I am so thankful for everything this sport has given me and leave feeling proud and fulfilled.
“Thank you to everyone who has supported me along the way, I’ll always be grateful for the lifelong memories that we created together.
In the video, Casey asked Ash what everyone was thinking: why now?
“I’m so happy and I’m so ready, and I just know at the moment in my heart, [for] me as a person, this is right,” Ash said.
“Wimbledon last year changed a lot for me as a person and as an athlete.
“To be able to win Wimbledon, which was my dream, my one true dream that I wanted to win in tennis — that really changed my perspective.
“I just had that gut feeling after Wimbledon. I had spoken to my team quite a lot about it and there was just a little part of me that wasn’t quite satisfied, quite fulfilled.
“Then came the challenge of the Australian open and I think that for me just feels like the most perfect way, my perfect way, to celebrate what an amazing journey my tennis career has been.
“This is what I want. I want to chase after some other dreams.”
