Anna-Lena Grönefeld finishes her tennis career
Anna-Lena Grönefeld, one of the most successful doubles players, announced her retirement.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Dec 05, 2019, 01:46 pm
"This little girl had dreams! The last 18 years she was allowed to live one of them! But now it is time for her to hopefully fulfill another dream, that of her own family. I thank all those who have always supported me, no matter if they were good times or not! My family, friends and all of you! Thanks! ", Grönefeld wrote on Twitter.
The 34-year-old looks back on a successful career, especially in mixed and doubles. In 2009 she won in Mixed Wimbledon (with Mark Knowles), in 2014 at the French Open (with Jean-Julien Rojer). In doubles, she reached seven semi-finals with the majors, three of them at Wimbledon.
At their last tournament, the WTA Finals in Shenzhen, Grönefeld played alongside Demi Schuurs in the semi-finals . Also in the German Fed Cup team, the Nordhorn was a fixture. Grönefeld has been privately married since 2018 with Ingo Herzgerodt, trainer at the TennisBase Hannover.
Psycho-terror prevents more in the individual
In the individual Grönefeld made it to 14th place in the WTA ranking, 2006 she was in the quarterfinals of the French Open. Problems with her former coach Rafael Font de Mora made Grönefeld difficult after that. "For Font de Mora I was his possession, his project. I also lived in his house later, so he had me fully in control at every turn. I just worked like a puppet under him, "she told the kicker in 2007. Mental and physical problems and a crash in the ranking were the result. In 2011, Grönefeld decided to focus only on doubles.
As a consultant, Grönefeld intends to expand its involvement with the Tennis Association Niedersachsen-Bremen (TNB). As a teenager, she went through all the stations in the former Lower Saxony Tennis Association; Landstrainer was then Lars Gruner, who still trains the talents in the TennisBase Hannover. "For this reason alone, I will always remain close to tennis and watch the young players here in the association," Grönefeld is quoted in a press release by TNB.