Rebecca Marino is taking an indefinite break from tennis and withdrawing from competition due to intense physical and mental fatigue.
The 21-year-old Vancouverite played only one WTA match in January when she lost in the opening round of the Australian Open. She pulled out of the Fed Cup in February and then failed to advance past the opening round of a Memphis tournament where, last year, she reached her first WTA final.
I decided to pull out of some events and take a bit of a break to rest and return stronger, said Marino in a Tennis Canada announcement. For the time being, the former Magee secondary student is also declining interview requests as part of her complete retreat.
She hasnt been active on Twitter since Feb. 28 when she wrote, Sorry for the silence lately! But I'm going to take a mini break from the twitter-verse...
As the days went by and became weeks, I realized I would need more than just a few days to fully recover, she said in Tuesdays announcement. I have decided to do whats best for my career and make sure I am fully rested before I return to the courts.
Marino declared herself to the tennis establishment as a 19-year-old at the 2010 U.S. Open by going head-to-head with the most powerful server in the womens game. Venus Williams pulled out the win but was impressed with Marino and famously said, I guess I know what its like playing myself.
Since then, Marino has been swept up in the four-season, international tennis circuit. She was twice named Tennis Canadas female athlete of the year and climbed as high as No. 41 in the world. Her rank has now fallen to No. 138.
She will not chase Olympic qualification but may make a return in time for the French Open.
Once I am ready to come back, she said, I plan to pick up where I left off, get my ranking back and challenge the best players in the world.
