Dementieva: ‘I’m not coming back’

 

Originally published on: 04/11/10 16:21

“It is true that I expect changes in my private life in the near future,” said Elena Dementieva, who announced her retirement last Friday at the season-ending WTA Championships.

“I don’t want to give all the details because these are very private, intimate things.

“But I have to admit I’ve made a decision to quit mainly because I want to start a family, have kids.”

Dementieva, 29, is also expected to marry long-time boyfriend Maxim Afinogenov.

Unlike Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin, she has no plans to return to the WTA Tour, which she has been a part of for the last 12 years, winning 16 singles titles and reaching two Grand Slam finals.

“It was a very difficult and emotional but if I decided to quit that was it. I’m not coming back,” said the former world No.3.

In the press conference immediately after her shock decision at the WTA Championships she also indicated she hopes to complete a degree.

“I’ll study. I studied in one of the best universities in Moscow,” said Dementieva. “I started last year, so obviously now I have more time to study.”

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