Tennis:Former Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo has confirmed her retirement from professional tennis.
The 30-year-old Frenchwoman, who also won the Australian Open and was ranked number one in the world in 2004, announced her decision at a news conference this morning.
Mauresmo said: “I came here to announce the end of my career. I made this decision after careful consideration.”
Mauresmo, 30, clinched her two grand slam titles in 2006. She collected 25 WTA singles titles since turning professional in 1993.
Following her Antwerp victory in 2007, she took longer than expected to recover from an appendectomy and suffered a series of injuries.
Mauresmo spent two years in the wilderness and thought about quitting before storming back to claim the Paris Open title in February this year.
However, she failed to maintain the momentum, losing to Russian Dinara Safina in the fourth round at Wimbledon in a match completed under the Centre Court's new roof.
Mauresmo, who arguably had one of the finest backhands on the tour, had not played competitive tennis since losing to Canada's Aleksandra Wozniak in the second round of the US Open.