Monica Puig says she can no longer play at the same level as others on the WTA Tour after announcing her retirement from the sport on Monday.
In an interview with ESPN the 28-year-old said she tried everything to recovery from injury but was unable to do so. Puig has only been able to play two Tour matches since October 2020 due to injury. She underwent elbow surgery in 2019 to treat a nerve before having two procedures on her right shoulder in 2020 and 2021.
“Today is a very special day for me. I am announcing my retirement from tennis. It’s very difficult because these last few years, I’ve tried to come back to my best level and try to do everything possible,” said Puig.
“I got to a moment when my body said ‘no more.’ It takes everything to make the hard decision to leave the tennis courts, and I know there is a bright future ahead but I will no longer be a professional player.”
Puig is best known for her stunning run at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games where she became the first athlete in history to win a gold medal whilst representing Puerto Rico. At the tournament she scored wins over Garbine Muguruza, Elina Svitolina, Petra Kvitova and Angelique Kerber.
Outside of the Olympics, she reached the final of three WTA Tour events with her only title occurring at the 2014 Strasburg Open. Puig has achieved a total of seven wins over top 10 players and has been ranked as high as 27th in the world.
“This wasn’t really my decision. I feel that tennis has left me,” she explains. “My body simply isn’t able to compete at the same level like we’re seeing with the top players nowadays. They are playing with powerful shots and my body isn’t able to compete at the same level. I feel that life has taken something important away from me.”
The final straw for Puig was a recent MRI scan she underwent shortly after attempting a comeback this year at the Madrid Open where she lost in the first round. Doctors found that she has once again sustained tears in her rotator cuff with the only way to fix it being a third shoulder surgery and fourth on her right arm in total.
Puig isn’t walking away from tennis completely after announcing her next challenge. She has joined ESPN’s Spanish-speaking team on a full-time basis and will be covering this year’s Wimbledon with them.
“It’s a little bittersweet, since I am losing the thing I love the most in the world but also a new passion is opening with ESPN and I am grateful for this phrase,” she concludes.
Puig ends her career with a win-loss record of 303-215. She has earned $3,570,824 in prize money.
