December 23, 2015 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Sweden’s Robin Soderling officially announced that he will be retiring from tennis on Wednesday in a statement to TT, a Swedish news publication.
“I have realized that I will not be fit enough to play tennis at the level I demand of myself,” said Soderling, who hasn’t played a match in more than four years.
In 2011, Soderling became ill with glandular fever, similar to mononucleosis, which caused him constant fatigue. Despite this, he continued training and was never able to return to the level he wanted.
The 31-year-old won 10 titles in his career and reached the French Open finals in 2009 and 2010. He will be most known for his upset of Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros in 2009. The loss remained Nadal’s only defeat on the clay courts of Paris until Novak Djokovic beat him in this year’s quarterfinals.
Soderling would reach a career-high ranking of number four in the world in late 2010.
“Although my career as a tennis player is over,” Soderling added. “I still have a bright future ahead of me and my schedule for the next few years is full.
