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BRISBANE – Ash Barty has said she would “never say never” about returning to professional tennis following her shock retirement.
She would not be drawn on questions about plans to remain in professional sport, and in response to a question about the prospect of a comeback, the Australian said: “Well, you never say never, it’s a long way off.”
Barty also hinted at a role with junior tennis in her home country, saying that “seeing the smiles” of the faces of younger players taking up the sport had reminded her “of why I started playing”. Asked if that meant she would have a formal position with junior tennis, Barty said she had “no details to share as yet”.
Barty stunned the tennis world on Wednesday when she announced her retirement from the sport at the age of 25 and as the reigning Wimbledon and Australian Open champion. The world No. 1 said on Thursday she had no regrets after revealing in a video posted on social media a day earlier that she was “spent” physically and had nothing left to give the sport.
Barty previously took an indefinite break from the game in 2014, during which she played cricket professionally for Brisbane Heat in the WBBL.
The Queenslander is also a keen golfer, but refused to be drawn on whether she might try her hand at the highest level in a third sport.
“I love sport. I’m a sport nut, like a lot of Australians are. I’ll be lured to it,” she said at a press conference in Brisbane.– The Guardian
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