Ongoing British Tennis…

Ashleigh Barty has announced her retirement from tennis at the grand old age of 25. 

Addick Addict said:

iaitch said:

Be interesting to see what she's got lined up.

Returning to play cricket?

Look like Barty wants to play a third sport at the highest level. Golf. Don't you just hate those sports people that are good at everything!!!

Gravesend_Addick said:

Addick Addict said:

Addick Addict said:

iaitch said:

Be interesting to see what she's got lined up.

Returning to play cricket?

Look like Barty wants to play a third sport at the highest level. Golf. Don't you just hate those sports people that are good at everything!!!

Surely she could retire from tennis in her 30's and still forge a career in golf?

Retiring from tennis at 25, when she's at the very top of the women's game seems very strange to me 

That is the point though. She isn't driven by money. She's driven by getting to the very top. Yes she could go on and win more grand slam events but, in the same way, as she played cricket at the very top, she's done so with tennis. Retiring at 25 to potentially play golf gives her longer to hone the skills necessary to do so in golf. Who is to say that should she achieve that by the time she is 30 she doesn't decide to go back to tennis?  Or even play AFL and/or football which she is already keen on. 

The biggest thing is that she is getting out of the sport on her terms and when she is happiest. When she took her break from tennis to play cricket she said this "I needed some time to refresh mentally more than anything. It became a bit of a slog for me and I wasn't enjoying my tennis as much as I would have liked to." The likes of Federer, Murray, Nadal and Djokovic just can't let go presumably because they still love doing it and all the pressures that playing it at that level brings. Barty doesn't and recognises that fact and I, for one, commend her for retiring because t's a hell of a lot harder to walk away than it is to stay.

Murray up to 81 in live ATP ranking after 1st round victory in Miami Open. Faces Medvedev next 

North Lower Neil said:

Good result for Heather Watson, beat world number 20 Elina Svitolina.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/60868473

Should help her climb back up the rankings.

hoof_it_up_to_benty said:

Raducanu's ranking will drop off a cliff after the US Open - struggling to make an impression. 

But...  before that, she will gain points for any sort of run at French Open

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/60898459

Callumcafc said:

hoof_it_up_to_benty said:

Siv_in_Norfolk said:

hoof_it_up_to_benty said:

Raducanu's ranking will drop off a cliff after the US Open - struggling to make an impression. 

But...  before that, she will gain points for any sort of run at French Open

She's gaining ranking points at every tournament at present but her ranking bears no resemblance to her form since the US Open. 

Emma has 2706 rankings points which has her at world number 12 at the moment.

2000 of those points came from her US Open win.


With 716 points (assuming she had lost in the US Open 1st round so gained 10 pts rather than 2000), she'd be ranked 92nd in the world.

She also reached the 4th round of Wimbledon last year, so will have to equal that to avoid dropping points

4 coaches in a year can’t be good for such a young player.

I think Raducanu is still trying to work out what she wants from a coach - she's only 19 now and her success was probably not based on any understanding of how she actually got there but more from her raw talent, the confidence of youth and a relatively kind draw. To maintain that success she has to develop that understanding and to work with a coach that can identify and help her with any flaws in her game. And she has to be able to have confidence that the coach in question can deliver that.

AddicksAddict said:

Addick Addict said:

I think Raducanu is still trying to work out what she wants from a coach - she's only 19 now and her success was probably not based on any understanding of how she actually got there but more from her raw talent, the confidence of youth and a relatively kind draw. To maintain that success she has to develop that understanding and to work with a coach that can identify and help her with any flaws in her game. And she has to be able to have confidence that the coach in question can deliver that.

I wish I'd said that.  Oh look, I nearly did.

I can’t help thinking that her dad, Ian, is the biggest blockage to her reaching a stable relationship with a trusted coach. He needs to be very careful here as his interference risks bursting the bubble. Yes, she’s only 19 still but the constant changes to the direction of travel can’t be helpful. 

DamoNorthStand said:

We say only 19 - but in the women’s game that isn’t actually THAT young.

Next year is a big year for her - let’s be honest she could never be win another game and she will still forever be a grand slam winner. But I do think after the next 12 months there will be a much better idea if that was a one off or a sign of what’s to come.

She's a far less experienced 19 year old than many of the other players her age, because she concentrated on her studies and had a "relatively" normal childhood, rather than devoting everything to tennis aged 14

Never having played on clay until last week is a sign of this, she still has plenty of room to develop