Originally published on: 26/02/10 12:35
The 32-year-old Argentinian, who lost to Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-2 6-3 6-2 at SW19, is quitting because he is tired of living the life of a professional tennis player.
“Everything has an end. I will enjoy being with my family and settling down in one place,” the world number 148 said.
“There are people who still believe a tennis player enjoys flights, goes for walks,” he added.
“Now I will not take a plane for a long time. I will no longer miss family meetings, my parents’ birthdays. I will no longer celebrate my birthday abroad or the Fathers’ Day here (London).
“When I was 14, I was a weekly boarder at a Buenos Aires school to play tennis. Now, a new life is starting. I wanted to enjoy life without pressures, flying with my family to attend the tournaments I liked, but I couldn’t go on this way.”
Rio Cuarto-born Calleri, won has lost nine of the 12 singles matches he played this year, reached a high of 16th in the world rankings in July 2003 and won two ATP titles – in Acapulco in 2003 and three years later in Kitzbuhel.
However, he highlighted a Davis Cup win as the most important in his career.
He said: “I have many beautiful memories, but I take the victory over (Spain’s Juan Carlos) Ferrero in the Davis Cup semi-final in 2003 (he won 6-4 7-5 6-1) in Malaga. “Ferrero was the world’s number one and I played brilliant tennis. It was a very special win.”
Calleri represented Argentina in Davis Cup finals in 2006 and 2008 but failed to get his hands on the silverware.
