Camila Giorgi announces return to WTA Tour in 2027 after years of off-court controversy

Camila Giorgi has endured one topsy turvey tennis career. From winning a WTA 1000 tournament to calling it quits for a career in fashion and modelling among other escapades, she is set to be making a return to the sport in 2027.

Lately, her life has been a bit of a whirlwind, but all for the right reasons. The 34-year-old married Argentine coach Andreas Pasutti back in February of this year. From then, she has announced that she will become a mother for the first time.

This has not stopped her from committing herself to competing in more tennis in the future. Formerly ranked as high as world number 26, the Italian believes that there is more in the tank after her abrupt departure in 2024.

The news was delivered on Instagram while answering questions from fans. "Will you come back to tournament tennis in the future?" one of the questions said. A brief but clear answer from Giorgi indicated her intentions. "Yes, in 2027." Another user asked: "Are you making a comeback?" To this, she confirmed the news a second time. "Yes, next year."

Giorgi was a fine tennis player in her day. Turning professional in 2006, her first WTA final came in 2014. A year later, she tasted triumph for the first time at the Rosmalen Open. She would add the Upper Austria Ladies Linz title to her collection in 2018 before causing a huge surprise in the 2021 Canadian Open. She defeated former world number one Karolina Pliskova in the final in straight sets to win the biggest title of her career. Her fourth and latest success came in the Merida Open in 2023.

At Grand Slam level, her most notable result was a quarterfinal at Wimbledon in 2018. She made it to the third round stage three other times in her career. Added to that, Giorgi also made the 2021 Olympics quarterfinal.

Giorgi may have been known in the past for that WTA 1000 triumph, but that is no longer the case. Her name is shrouded with controversy and bemusing stories, starting with her retirement from tennis.

No one saw it coming, with it seemingly emerging out of thin air. Her last match came in the second round of the Miami Open in 2024, losing to the world number one Iga Swiatek. There was no big send offs, just a quiet departure. She would focus her time on becoming a lingerie model, posting pictures to her social media pages.

Shortly after she left the tour, financial problems became apparent with the media overlooking the situation from afar. It did not help her case that she left to live in the USA, abandoning Italy as the scent grew stronger with her father also having been in hot water surrounding tax between 2013-2014. She has since firmly rejected any tax evasion.

Now, she splits her time between Italy and Argentina, where her husband is from. She will become a mother for the first time this year as she eyes up a possible return to tennis in 2027.