Agnieszka Radwanksa announces retirement with immediate effect

The most successful tennis athlete from Poland, Agnieszka Radwanska announced her immediate retirement from tennis yesterday.

Radwanska decided to hang up her racquet after a productive 13-year career which saw her win 20 WTA Singles titles. Radwanska was a runner-up at the Wimbledon Championships in 2012 losing the final in 3 sets to Serena Williams. She also reached the semi-finals at the All England Club in 2013 and 2015. She also made the semi-finals at Roland Garros on 2 occasions in 2014 and 2016.

The 29-year-old Pole, who reached a career-high ranking of No. 2 following her run to the Wimbledon final in 2012, says she is "no longer able to train and play the way I used to.'' "Taking into consideration my health and the heavy burdens of professional tennis, I have to concede that I'm not able to push my body to the limits required,'' Radwanska wrote on her Facebook page. She, however, has indicated that she would like to involved with the game of tennis going into the future.

Apart from her run to the Wimbledon Finals in 2012, the high point of her career came in 2015 when she won the WTA Finals despite losing her first two group matches. The same year she also helped Poland win the Hopman Cup for the first time along with her partner Jerzy Janowicz. For 9 consecutive years from 2008 to 2016, she was ranked inside the WTA Top-15.

The most accomplished Polish tennis athlete, Radwanska received a congratulatory message from Poland President Andrzej Duda for her successes on court and efforts to popularize the game of tennis in her home country.

Among her other noteworthy achievements are being named the WTA Fan favourite player for a record 6 consecutive years from 2011 to 2016 and winning the WTA Shot of the Year Award for a record 5 seasons.

Ninja. Professor. Magician. These are just a few of the nicknames that were bestowed upon Radwanska who was known for her uncanny ability to pull off the most spectacular of winners. Her retirement from the game will surely deprive tennis fans of one of the best entertainers that the game has ever seen.