Former World No. 4 Dominika Cibulkova has announced her immediate retirement from professional tennis after battling an ongoing achilles problem…
Dominika Cibulkova announces retirement due to achilles injury
Dominika Cibulkova (PA Images)
Former World No. 4 Dominika Cibulkova has announced her immediate retirement from professional tennis after battling an ongoing achilles problem for the last couple of years.
Cibulkova compiled an excellent career, winning eight WTA titles and climbing to a career-high ranking of World No. 4, which is the highest mark reached in history by a Slovakian woman.
The 30-year-old won her biggest career title at the WTA Finals Singapore in 2016, beating then World No. 1 Angelique Kerber in the final, while Cibulkova also made the 2014 Australian Open final, the semi-finals of Roland Garros in 2009 and the Wimbledon quarter-finals on three occasions. Cibulkova was also a U.S. Open quarter-finalist in 2010.
The Slovakian’s best season on tour came in 2016 when she won the aforementioned WTA Finals Singapore (becoming just the fourth player to win the tournament on debut at the time), along with more titles in Katowice, Eastbourne and Linz and runner-up finishes in Acapulco, Wuhan and Madrid.
Cibulkova earned a total of 35 top 10 wins throughout the course of her career, including five victories over World No. 1s.
After hitting her career-high ranking of No. 4 in March 2017, Cibulkova began to suffer from ongoing injuries to her achilles, causing her ranking to gradually dip.
“What started as a recurring Achilles injury, developed into one of the most difficult moments in my life – deciding on what to do with my tennis career,” Cibulkova wrote on social media.
“After a lot of thinking, talks, and support from my family, friends, and my team, I have finally decided that I will not be returning to the courts as a competitive player. It is a moment filled with so many feelings – sadness, fear of the unknown, but also excitement of what life will bring in the future.”
Cibulkova played her last match at the French Open this season, losing to Aryna Sabalenka, finishing her career with a 450-299 win-loss record and prize money of $13,725,520.
The 30-year-old announced her retirement on the same day she launched her biography, while Cibulkova is already set up for life after tennis, investing in a tennis academy in Bratislava called Love4Tennis, along with the popular Velvet City nightspot in the Slovakian city.
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