Tennis star Amanda Anisimova announced her indefinite break from the sport, as she specified her struggles with mental health and burnout.
The 21-year-old revealed the news of her break on Friday (May 5) on Instagram and was candid about her mental state spanning from last year.
“I’ve really been struggling with my mental health and burnout since the summer of 2022, the American said.
READ MORE: Tennis star hits back at trolls criticising her ‘giant boobs’ and ‘unathletic body’
“It’s become unbearable being at tennis tournaments. At this point, my priority is my mental well-being and taking a break for some time. I’ve worked as hard as I could to push through it.”
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(Image: @amandaanisimova/Instagram)
“I will miss being out there, and I appreciate all the continuous support.”
The former world No.21 reached that career high in 2019 after making a run to the semi-finals of the French Open the same year but suffered a major tragedy later that year in the form of the passing of her father and long-time coach Konstantin at the age of 52.
Speaking to the New York Times in 2020, she said: “This is obviously the hardest thing I’ve had to go through and the hardest thing that’s ever happened to me, and I don’t really talk about it with anyone.
(Image: Getty Images)
“The only thing that has helped me is just playing tennis and being on the court. That’s what makes me happy, and I know it would make him happy, so that’s the way it is.”
The New Jersey native was honest about the trolls that she’s had to contend with and the constant discussions about her body.
On Thursday (May 4), she posted a mirror selfie on her Instagram story where she received a private message criticising her body.
(Image: AP)
Anisimova showed the message which read: “The most unathletic body ever! Narrow shoulders and giant boobs.”
The current world No.46 replied: “thank you” accompanied with a kissing emoji, as she wrote “Idk what to think? Lol”, above the post.
“The amount of people who comment on my body every day on social media… will never understand what the hyper fixation is about,” she added.
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