Former world No. 1 tennis player Ana Ivanovic has revealed that severe panic attacks and an overwhelming fear of playing contributed to her decision to retire from the sport at the age of 29. Ivanovic, who won the French Open in 2008 and was at the peak of her career, announced her retirement abruptly in December 2016, just before the start of the 2017 season.
In a recent interview, Ivanovic described experiencing intense panic attacks whenever she was required to walk onto the court. "During the last years of my career, I experienced very severe panic attacks whenever I had to walk onto the court," she stated, as reported by an X post from @tennis_photos. "People would wonder what suddenly happened in the middle of a match, why my game would fall apart but the truth is that I’d be overcome by panic and simply couldn’t go on."
This fear extended beyond the matches themselves. Ivanovic explained that she became "overwhelmed by the fear of having to go out and play in front of people again the next day." She had not previously discussed the extent of these struggles publicly.
Ivanovic's admission sheds light on the significant mental hurdles athletes can face, particularly at the highest levels of competition. Her decision to retire at 29, while still physically capable, was a shock to the tennis community. She has since moved on to other aspects of her life; in 2025, her divorce from German soccer star Bastian Schweinsteiger made headlines.