Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova (Sputnik photo)
MOSCOW -- A left wrist injury and psychological unpreparedness forced Maria Sharapova to retire from Wimbledon, Russian Tennis Federation (RTF) president Shamil Tarpishchev told TASS over the phone on Tuesday.
The 32-year-old Russian tennis retired after two hours and 16 minutes while trailing French Pauline Parmentier 4-6, 6-7 (4-7) 0-5 in their first-round match of the prestigious Wimbledon Championships in London.
The 33-year old Parmentier is set to face No. 30 seed Spanish Carla Suarez Navarro in the next round.
"Lacking practice in tournaments has told on her nervous system. She should have participated in three or four tournaments before Wimbledon in order to hit her stride,” Tarpishchev said.
Sharapova is Russia’s most decorated tennis player having won a total of five Grand Slam tournaments namely: the Australian Open in 2008, the French Open in 2012 and 2014, Wimbledon in 2004 and the US Open in 2006.
She also bagged the silver medal in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London and was the 2008 Federations Cup champion.
In 2018, Sharapova participated in 11 tennis tournaments, including four Grand Slam competitions. Her best results last season were the semifinals of the tournaments in China’s Shenzhen and Italy’s capital city, Rome. (Sputnik)
