Tommy Robredo has chosen the Barcelona Open as the place where he will retire from tennis as the event means a lot to him.
He is a two-time champion winning in 2004 and 2006 and it's no surprise it's the event will be his last one. The retirement is not a surprise either as he never really recovered from the elbow injury he suffered at the beginning of 2016. On his retirement, Robredo said:
“I am thrilled about this last challenge, this last tournament I’m going to play in Barcelona, even if I will try to play in Murcia as well, so as to get some pace and match play under my belt. My last flight will be at home, that’s the way I wanted to say goodbye to the tour, even though I’ve been missing for some time. My dream was to bid farewell to the public, to my people… last year could have been an option, but with COVID and everything it involved, I didn’t even consider it. I couldn’t imagine saying goodbye without my parents being in the stands, so we decided to wait another year.”
Remembering his career he said:
“Tennis gave me a lot, it taught me everything, it raised me, gave me the education and values I still have. In tennis you fall and get back up every week, you learn how to win and how to lose, you rise to fame, you earn amazing money while you’re still very young, you’re constantly striving to reach your goals… What a normal person experiences in 70 years, players experience in 20.”