Ricardas Berankis has announced his retirement from tennis with an emotional social media post.
The Lithuanian star has been playing professional tennis since 2007, having reached a career ranking high of World No. 50 in 2016.
He spent the latter stages of his career on the Challenger circuit, where he won six tournaments in the last six years.
At the age of 35, Berankis has made the decision to step away from the sport after 288 professional matches.
Ricardas Berankis announces retirement from tennis
Taking to Instagram to tell his 11,000 followers, Berankis wrote: “Today is one of those days that seems like it will never come, but when it does, it touches me deeply and deeply.
“I want to announce that I have made one of the most difficult decisions of my life – to end my professional tennis career. 25 years is not just a number. It is the path of life that I have walked.
“It is a childhood dream to reach the heights of tennis. This stage passed like a moment, but at the same time it left an unimaginable amount: excitement, struggle, victories, more painful experiences, lasting experiences and acquaintances that will accompany me for the rest of my life. There were ups.
“There were downs. These experiences grew me as an athlete and as a person. Every story has a beginning and an end…
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“Today I close one of the most important chapters of my life and I do so with peace and gratitude. I thank everyone who was there for me – family, friends, coaches, teammates, sponsors, partners, fans and everyone who believed, supported, encouraged and helped me get back up when it was the most difficult. My faith and your support were my driving force.
“I believe that in the near future we will have the opportunity to meet again and remember the whole journey we have taken. Thank you for everything.”
Berankis brushed shoulders with some of the biggest stars in the sport, having played Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic in Grand Slam matches.
Ricardas Berankis’ career highlights
Berankis was put in the unfortunate position of having to play Murray, Djokovic, and Nadal several times on the biggest stages.
The Lithuanian met Nadal in the round of 64 at Wimbledon in 2022, and even took a set off the legendary star.
As for Djokovic, Berankis was drawn against the Serbian three different times at the 2013 US Open, as well as Roland Garros in 2020 and 2021.
Murray beat Berankis at the 2013 Australian Open, after the pair had practiced with each other throughout the Aussie leg of the tour.
Speaking about his relationship with Murray, he said: “The main thing is that I feel quite calm because I have practised a bit with him. It’s not going to be a big surprise to see who is on the other side of the net.
“First time it’s always, ‘Wow, you’re hitting with a top player’, but then you calm down and just play your game. That’s an advantage to me, that I’m going to be used to him.”
Despite his bad luck in Grand Slam draws, the Lithuanian managed to reach the third round at the Australian Open, Roland Garros, and the US Open. He also reached the second round of Wimbledon on four separate occasions.
Berankis ended his career without an ATP-level title, but he did reach two finals at the Los Angeles Open in 2012 and the Kremlin Cup in 2017. He lost to Sam Querrey in the first and Damir Džumhur in the latter.
He was also ever-present for Lithuania in the Davis Cup, and famously defeated Great Britain’s Dan Evans in arguably his nation’s biggest-ever victory in 2010.
