Indian tennis star Sania Mirza shared an emotional message after deciding to bring the curtain down on her professional career.
Taking to Twitter, Sania, who is the wife of Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Malik, shared a carousel of pictures with an emotional letter attached to them to announce her retirement.
Sania said that the upcoming Australian Open, which kicks off on January 16, will be "the perfect Grand Slam" as she nears the end of her career.
Following the Australian Open, the 36-year-old will be taking part in the Dubai Open in February before putting an end to a glorious 20-year professional career.
In the post, Sania recalled visiting to see a tennis tournament with her mother when she was six, and fighting with the coach to allow her learn the game despite being too young.
"I feel so blessed to have lived my dream while achieving my goals with my family by my side. It's been 20 years of being a professional athlete and 30 years of being a tennis player. It's basically all I've known throughout my life," she said.
"Life must move on and I don’t think this is the end but, in fact, the beginning of many different memories to be created, dreams to be achieved and new goals to be set. My son needs me more than ever now and I can’t wait to live a slightly quieter and calmer life while giving him more of my time than I have been able to give so far," she added.
She will be playing in women's doubles at the Australian Open, alongside Kazakhstan's Anna Danilina, where she started her Grand Slam journey back in 2005.