The Spanish pro athlete hasn’t played since January and isn’t planning a return anytime soon

Garbiñe Muguruza has been on an indefinite break from tennis since January. In a surprising interview with Women’s Health magazine, she revealed that she doesn’t miss the pro circuit at all and is very happy. She’s in no hurry to return anytime soon, nor has she thought about next season yet.

“Right now, I have no plans of coming back,” said the former top-ranked player in the world. “My plan is to just sleep, rest, spend time with loved ones and make up for lost time… I’m not really thinking beyond what I’m doing today, tomorrow, and this week, you know? And as for how I’m feeling about taking this break that I announced back in mid-April, I must say I’m really enjoying it. I was just so tired of the pressure and being judged by the media and experts every week. So, this break is exactly what my body and mind needed. I’m genuinely loving every moment of it.”

Muguruza played her last match on January 30 – a loss in Lyon (France) against Linda Noskova, then ranked number 56 in the world. Soon after, she announced that she would take a break until the summer. But things changed, and by late spring she realized that she wouldn’t be competing this season. She needed a detox – zero tennis. “I’m not doing anything related to tennis on a regular basis,” she told Women’s Health; “I keep up with friends who are players and occasionally play for fun – nothing intense. I’m taking a real break and trying to stay away from the courts.”

Muguruza now enjoys dancing Zumba and recently took part in a large event in Málaga (Spain). She plays some paddle tennis, goes for walks and stays active, but tennis is no longer her focus. “My body has actually changed since I’m no longer competing. Nowadays, I focus on staying in shape without pushing myself to the limit. I make sure to hit the gym regularly, usually a few times a week. I absolutely enjoy lifting weights and balance it out with some Zumba, Pilates, yoga, and even boxing for cardio. It’s great to have the time for all these activities that I couldn’t do when I was training for tennis,” she said. Muguruza says she doesn’t pay the slightest attention to her tennis ranking, which is currently number 1,038 in the world.

A rare tennis moment in Azkoitia

Muguruza, who recently turned 30, has made the most of her time off by attending the Seville Fair in April and the San Sebastián International Film Festival. She has also spent hours exploring the beautiful Andalusian coast and enjoying nature. She went to Madrid in July to receive the Gold Medal of the Royal Order of Sporting Merit at the Chamartín Tennis Club. At the event, she told reporters, “I took a brave step hitting the brakes – it wasn’t easy. But I’m happy I did it. I haven’t set a date for a comeback just yet, but it definitely won’t be this year because I want to spend time with my family. It’s not a permanent farewell or anything, just a year off to recharge. It’s not really the competition I miss, but I do miss that feeling of winning. Right now, my main goal is to rest up and unwind.”

The winner of the French Open (2016), Wimbledon (2017) and the Masters Cup (2020) has only been spotted playing once recently. In July, she visited the small town of Azkoitia (northern Spain) with her father José Antonio, who moved to Spain from Venezuela in 1978. Accompanied by 250 young players, the two inaugurated an indoor tennis facility named after Muguruza.

“I don’t want to think about a date because then you don’t rest mentally. I want to come back when I really feel like I’m ready,” she said in Azkoitia. She no longer craves the adrenaline of being an elite athlete. Instead, she embraces a lifestyle she never knew existed since leaving for Barcelona at the age of seven to launch her tennis career. The only thing she misses is the camaraderie of her pro tennis friends.

The next step will be a very special one. In 2024, Muguruza will marry Arthur Borges, the man she’s been with for the last two years. Meanwhile, she continues to delicately pluck the daisy, supported by her inner circle, yet granted the freedom to make her own decisions. “It’s all up to her – the decision is solely Garbiñe’s,” they told us. One thing is crystal clear – she won’t be making a comeback anytime soon.

Spanish tennis ace Paula Badosa recently featured in a 20-second advertisement for luxury hair care brand Kérastase. Her appearance was subsequently lauded by none other than Garbine Muguruza.

In a video shared yesterday via her Instagram, Badosa could be seen earnestly advertising the beauty product. Sporting a pair of denims and an athleisure fit on-screen, Badosa looked equally at home in both the contrasting style choices.

Badosa said their products were essentials in her kit bag and that she was excited to head into the 2024 season with them by her side.

The former world No. 2 saw a sea of love on her post, but one handle in particular had an extremely special message for Badosa. Compatriot and two-time Grand Slam winner, Garbine Muguruza, made sure to let Badosa know that she looked stunning during the shoot.

Conversing in their native language Spanish, Muguruza described Badosa as “very beautiful,” to which Badosa replied with a heart emoji.

The pair share a great friendship on and off the court. Both Spanish nationals, Badosa and Muguruza have taken part in multiple Fed Cups (now Billie Jean King Cup) together for their country.

The duo have crossed paths just once on the WTA, at the 2021 WTA Finals in Guadalajara, Mexico. Muguruza came out on top in that contest and eventually won the tournament, defeating Anett Kontaveit in straight sets in the final.

Currently inactive since announcing a hiatus from the tour with “no intentions” to return to the WTA, it is uncertain if Muguruza will ever take on Badosa on the court again.

Garbine Muguruza has had a disappointing start to the 2023 season, losing all four of her matches so far. With first-round exits at the Adelaide International 1, the Adelaide International 2, the Australian Open and the Lyon Open, the former World No. 1 has nowhere to go but up for the rest of the year.

Despite all that, the Spaniard has not lost hope just yet and is confident of turning things around for herself. Set to play against Karolina Pliskova in her opener at the Abu Dhabi Open up next, Muguruza spoke to The National recently, touching on her run of form of late.

A seasoned pro with more than a decade of experience under her belt, the two-time Grand Slam champion pointed to how tennis is a sport with “no memory” — meaning one can lose early one week and still go on to win a title the next week. Having gone through all that, Garbine Muguruza knows she just has to remain calm and keep working hard to get herself out of the slump she’s in right now.

The 29-year-old admitted that she had put too much pressure on herself last year, a season that did not go according to plan either. Starting 2022 as the World No. 3, Muguruza ended the year in the 55th spot, registering a 12-17 win/loss record and reaching no semifinals.Gar

But now that she has nothing to lose, Muguruza is confident in her own abilities, hoping she can enjoy her time on the court along the way. The optimist that she is, the two-time Grand Slam champion looks forward to seeing how quickly everything can change, especially when one least expects it.

The former world No. 1 may be on an extended break from tennis, but she hasn’t missed a beat on the dance floor.

Garbine Muguruza may be on an extended break from tennis, but she hasn’t missed a beat on the dance floor.

The former world No. 1 turned Latin dance fitness devotee showed off her moves on social media, as she recently took part in a Zumba instructors’ event in Malaga.

“Thank you to @Zumba for inviting me to participate in their (Zumba Instructor Network) Academy last Saturday,” Muguruza shared on Instagram on Tuesday. “Had a great time dancing with the 500+ instructors who came from all over Europe and made up the ZIN community.

“Much happiness, joy and fun. I love dancing and if it’s with Zumba, even more! It has been a blast. Hope to do it again very soon!”

Back in April, Muguruza announced that she would be stepping away from tennis in favor of spending more time with family and friends, including fiance Arthur Borges, with whom she became engaged in May. The Spaniard last competed in February at the Open 6e Sens Métropole de Lyon, where she lost a fifth straight match (dating back to last fall) to Czech teen Linda Noskova.

After dancing up a storm in Malaga, Muguruza caught up with Spanish press—but she deflected giving any specific details about her eventual comeback to tennis.

“I only think about enjoying these holidays to the fullest, I haven’t set any goals for myself yet,” she told Diario Sur. “We are in September and there is still a long way to go.

She added, “I’m making plans that I couldn’t make when I was still competing on the circuit.”

While she hasn’t given many details on her return to tennis, the two-time Grand Slam champion has been clear that this break is just a “sabbatical”—and definitely shouldn’t be taken as a sign that she intends to hang up her racquets anytime soon.

In fact, Muguruza revealed that upon her return she intends to target the last two majors she’s missing—the Australian Open and US Open—plus an Olympic gold medal.

“I’m enjoying this sabbatical, I think it’s good to stop but it’s not a final goodbye,” she told Marca back in July.

“I’m trying to rest, be with my people, disconnect a little, but it’s not a goodbye. I want to prepare to return, when I’m ready I will return to the courts.”

Garbine Muguruza has announced she’s taking an extended break from the tennis tour and will miss the French Open and Wimbledon as a result. The Spaniard, who won the French Open in 2016 and Wimbledon in 2017, has only played four matches in 2023 – losing all four.

She went down to Elise Mertens in the first round at the Australian Open in January, and hasn’t played since a loss to Czech teenager Linda Noskova at the Lyon Open in February. On Monday, the 29-year-old revealed to fans that she’s stepping away from tennis for the time being and will skip the clay and grass-court seasons.

Spending time with family and friends and it’s really been healthy and amazing so I am going to lengthen this period till summer,” she wrote on Instagram. “Therefore I am going to miss clay and grass season. Thanks for all the lovely messages and will be updating you guys.”

A former Wimbledon champion and world number one seems to have taken up a new career as a Zumba expert.

Garbine Muguruza was recently spotted taking part in a new edition of ZIN Academy – which was held at the Martín Carpena Palace in Malaga last Saturday.

The 29-year-old, who has already posted several clips of her practicing Zumba over the years, was seen on stage dancing to ‘Vagabundo’ by Sebastian Yatra.

More than 500 people attended the event in Spain as they gathered to dance and learn new choreographies – with Muguruza looking like she enjoyed every second of it as she takes a break from the sport of tennis.

She revealed that players have to work on containing their emotions in tennis, while it is the complete opposite in Zumba.

‘The difference between my usual training and Zumba is that in tennis you work on containing your emotions, being focused and not making mistakes,’ she said.

‘However, in Zumba, it is the opposite. It doesn’t matter if you make a mistake, you let yourself be carried away by the music and your emotions come to the foreground.’

The event in Malaga combined fitness and fun, with dancer being able to express themselves for 10 hours in a world of ‘learning and entertainment.’

Last Saturday’s event was lead by the brand’s founder, Beto Perez – who is well-known for his energy and choreography.

It’s not the first time the Spaniard has been filmed doing Zumba. The tennis star has posted videos of her dancing regularly on social media.

Back in July, the 29-year-old said that she plans to return to action next year following a ‘sabbatical.’

Speaking at the Chamartin Tennis Club, where she received the Gold Medal for Sports Merit, the Spaniard said: ‘I’m enjoying this sabbatical, I think it’s good to stop but it’s not a definitive goodbye.

‘I want to prepare myself to come back, when I’m ready I’ll go back to the courts.’

The Spaniard has not stepped foot on the court since her straight sets defeat to Linda Noskova at the Lyon Open back in January.

The two-time Grand Slam winner has not tasted success in a major competition since her victory at Wimbledon in 2017.

She defeated Venus Williams at the Wimbledon final in 2017 – two years after her first major Grand Slam victory.

Her first win in a Grand Slam came in 2015 when she defeated Serena Williams at the French Open final.

While the former world No 1 will be itching to get back onto the court, it seems as if she is currently enjoying life outside of the sport.

Garbine Muguruza was not going to leave the court at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Sunday without calling opponent Barbora Krejcikova “so unprofessional” to her face.

The testy exchange came after the eighth-seeded Krejcikova defeated the ninth-seeded Muguruza 6-3, 7-6 (4) in the fourth round of the U.S. Open.

Muguruza was unhappy with Krejcikova taking a medical timeout in the second set after Muguruza rallied from a 4-0 deficit to take a 6-5 lead.

When play resumed, Krejcikova, who said she had a diaphragm issue, won seven straight points. Muguruza was also seemingly irked by Krejcikova taking her time between points and slowly walking over to her towel. At the conclusion of the match, Muguruza and Krejcikova had a frosty handshake at the net, where Krejcikova seemed to apologize to Muguruza, who shook her head and said, “You’re so unprofessional.”

Krejcikova then stayed in her sidelined chair, hunched over, before leaving the court with assistance. She did not do the winner’s one-court interview after the match, and was not made available to the media afterwards.

“Listen, I don’t really want to talk about this,” Muguruza told reporters when first asked about what happened late in the second set. “I’ll let you guys judge what you think about this.”

She added: “Well, I think, between players, you know a little bit how to behave in certain moments and, yeah, I wasn’t very happy at the end of the match. That’s pretty much it.”

Instead of a post-match press conference, Krejcikova had a statement distributed by the U.S. Tennis Association.

“At the end, I was really struggling and I feel really bad right now,” said Krejcikova, who will face Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka in the quarterfinals. “I don’t really know what happened, but I couldn’t breathe. I started to feel dizzy, and the whole world was shaking. It never happened to me before.”

Elle Spain’s May edition is traditionally the magazine’s “body” issue, but this time around they’re tossing out their usual playbook.

The magazine unveiled four different covers featuring two-time Grand Slam winner Garbiñe Muguruza alongside gymnast Simone Biles, actress Milena Smith and model Kasia Kruss, representing their new vision of a perfect body—that is, one that is not ‘perfect’ at all, but rather “healthy, strong and diverse”.

Muguruza teased the photoshoot and cover story on social media, with an Instagram post showing off a series of outfit changes and poses from what the Spaniard called “one of the most fun photoshoots” she’s done.

“I have never felt that I couldn’t do anything I set my mind to. Whether that is being an engineer, athlete or dancer. Maybe that’s because of how my parents educated me and the autonomy they instilled in me,” Muguruza told Elle Spain.

Earlier in the week, Muguruza shared an encouraging update after missing the first part of the clay season due to a shoulder injury: the Spaniard is back on the practice courts preparing for her comeback.

The former world No. 1 has been struggling to get her season up and running, and she’s recorded back-to-back match wins just once this season in Doha. After withdrawing from the Miami Open due to injury, she spent some time in Africa visiting Zimbabwe and Botswana—her “fifth off-season” of the year, she joked on Twitter.

Muguruza, currently No. 9 in the WTA rankings, is next scheduled to compete in the WTA 1000-level Madrid Open, which kicks off on May 1.

The Spaniard needed to beat Barbora Krejcikova on Friday night to stay in contention for a spot in the final four in Guadalajara—and she came through.

Having (narrowly) lost her first round-robin match of the tournament to Karolina Pliskova two nights ago, Garbine Muguruza needed to win against Barbora Krejcikova on Friday night to keep her semifinal hopes alive at the WTA Finals in Guadalajara.

And win she did, battling to a 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over the Czech.

“Well that was a very tough match,” Muguruza said in her on-court interview.

“It was amazing. The crowd helped me so much during the second set to come back. I didn’t start the match very well, so in the second set I had to push myself and fight with whatever tennis I had today, and I was playing so much better in the third set.”

There was a clear improvement from Muguruza throughout the match. Her game went awry in the first set, producing 2 winners to 18 unforced errors—but once that set was out of the way things shifted, as the Spaniard was almost even the rest of the match, hitting 19 winners to 22 unforced errors across the next two sets.

She snuck out the only break of the third set to go up 2-1 and never let it go, as the two players held from there until it was all over after two hours and 10 minutes.

The No. 5-ranked Muguruza, who’s back in the Top 5 for the first time since 2018, was asked how it feels to be back at this stage again with the best of the best.

“It was a tough journey, and sometimes there are ups and downs, but I work hard,” she said. “I have an excellent team that helped me to be back in the top.”

Muguruza’s win over the No. 3-ranked Krejcikova was her 13th career win over a Top 5 player, and her first win over someone in the Top 3 since she defeated a No. 3-ranked Simona Halep in the semifinals of the 2020 Australian Open.

Perhaps more relevantly to this week, it keeps her in contention for a spot in the semifinals of the WTA Finals. Anett Kontaveit already secured her spot in the final four with her 6-4, 6-0 win over Pliskova earlier in the day—on Sunday, Muguruza (1-1) will play Kontaveit (2-0) and Krejcikova (0-2) will play Pliskova (1-1) in the last wave of round-robin matches from the Teotihuacan Group, and one of Krejcikova, Pliskova and Muguruza will join Kontaveit in the final four, depending on the results.

Even Krejcikova still has a shot at advancing if there ends up being a three-way tie at 1-2 and she comes out on top after the tiebreaker rules.