Former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone has announced her intention to retire from professional tennis after suffering a first-round loss at the Hobart International.
Croatian qualifier Jana Fett on Monday posted a 6-3, 6-2 win over the Italian who later confirmed that 2017 will be her last year on the WTA tour.
“This is my last year of tennis ... that’s why I’m upset [I] didn’t give the best here,” Schiavone told reporters after the match.
The 2010 winner at Roland Garros who is a three-time Olympian and reached a career-high world No4 ranking in 2011, now sits outside the top 100 and said motivation and fitness were behind her decision to retire.
“This year I want to give everything that [I’ve] learned in the last 19 years,” Schiavone said.
Fett was surprised by her win against a big name in her debut WTA tour main draw apperance, just three months after coming back from a lengthy wrist injury.
She now faces Queensland teenager Lizette Cabrera on Tuesday who also caused an upset on Sunday, defeating world No40 Misaki Doi to progress to the second round.
“My plan was to play Australian Open next week, but we’ll see how that goes because if I win next round then I can’t play,” Fett, 20, said of a clash in scheduling.
In other day-two action Lucie Safarova from the Czech Republic scored a 6-3, 6-4 win over Swiss contender Viktorija Golubic.
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