"I need to get away from tennis, not spend more time around it": When Steffi Graf felt she was under too much pressure on tour amid viewership decline
Steffi Graf once candidly shared her thoughts about the pressure of competing on the tennis tour. The German made the remarks in response to concerns about declining interest and viewership in the sport.
Graf made her professional debut at just 13 and began steadily rising up the rankings. The German won her first WTA title at the 1986 Family Circle Cup, making waves by beating Chris Evert 6-4, 7-5 in the final. She went on to win seven more titles that season.
Steffi Graf made her Grand Slam breakthrough at the 1987 French Open, claiming a hard-fought 6-4, 4-6, 8-6 win over Martina Navratilova in the blockbuster title clash. The next year, she broke new ground by accomplishing the coveted calendar Golden Slam, winning all four Major titles and the Olympic gold medal in the same year.
By 1994, the German had established her dominance on tour, winning her 15th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. However, the Melbourne Slam saw a decline in attendance by over 31,000 spectators, which was accompanied by a drop in television ratings.
Amid the growing concerns about the apparent disinterest in the sport, there were calls for top players to do a better job of promoting tennis. However, Steffi Graf felt that she was already under too much pressure on tour.
In a 1994 interview with Sports Illustrated, the German, who had been competing on the professional circuit since she was a teenager, asserted that she needed time away from tennis.
"Look, I need to get away from tennis, not spend more time around it," Graf said.
Graf later revealed that experiencing similar feelings prompted her shocking decision to retire from professional tennis at the age of 30.
"I felt a certain satisfaction that I didn't put tennis in the first place anymore" - Steffi Graf on realizing it was time to retire
Although Steffi Graf won her 22nd Grand Slam title at the 1999 French Open, she came to the realization that it was time to end her career after losing to Lindsay Davenport in the Wimbledon final just a month later.
Speaking to the press at her farewell ceremony at Madison Square Garden during the year-end championships, the former World No. 1 disclosed that she felt a sense of "satisfaction" knowing that tennis was no longer her priority.
"That moment came after Wimbledon, and, you know, it didn't really hit me at one specific time. It just came gradually, when I started to get ready for the tournaments and I realized that, you know, I wasn't really getting into it too much. I felt a certain, not emptiness, but I felt a certain satisfaction that I, you know, didn't put tennis in the first place anymore," Graf said.
Steffi Graf also shed light on her life after retirement, sharing that she was appreciating her "calmer life" after being "ruled" by the tennis schedule during her career.