Australian tennis legend Ashleigh Barty, 26, opened up about dealing with the body image issues in her book. Barty, a former three-time Grand Slam champion, announced a shock retirement from tennis earlier this year at the age of 25.
In her book – which is set to be released in November – Barty opened up about some of her struggles and explained what prompted a shock retirement from tennis at a very young age. “I went through that like a lot of people do and a big part of my passion now is to encourage girls and boys to be comfortable in themselves.
It helped me realise that imperfections are part of all of us and they are OK. By sharing some of my insecurities hopefully it can help them realise a lot of people go through it. This is a very common issue. I had enough issues just being a girl in the world,” Barty wrote in her book titled “My Dream Time: A Memoir of Tennis & Teamwork.”
Barty on why she retired at 25
Last year, Barty achieved her childhood dream after winning Wimbledon. After winning Wimbledon, Barty just couldn’t motivate herself anymore. Barty appeared in just five tournaments after her Wimbledon triumph.
“Winning Wimbledon was the single thing I wanted my whole career. But after that feat, in June 2021, the fire died inside,” Barty told NewsCorp. After winning Wimbledon, Barty played three tournaments in the rest of the 2021 season and competed in just two tournaments at the start of the 2022 season.
“I don’t know what I’m playing for anymore. I think I’m done. I have got nothing left, no spark,” Barty also wrote in her book. When Barty announced her retirement in late March, many were absolutely shocked since Barty was coming off a Grand Slam victory and she was the top-ranked player in the world.
