Former Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic said he has been the “luckiest person” to live out his dreams as he announced his retirement from tennis.
The 35-year-old Canadian beat Roger Federer to reach the Wimbledon showpiece in 2016, where he fell to a straight-set defeat by Great Britain’s Andy Murray.
Raonic, who won eight tour-level titles, achieved a career-high world ranking of three that same year, having also reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open.
“The time has come, I am retiring from tennis,” Raonic posted on social media on Sunday.
“This is a moment you know will come one day, but somehow you never feel ready for it. This is as ready as I will ever be.
“Tennis has been my love and obsession for most of my life.”
Best known for his powerful serve, which earned him the nickname ‘Missile’, Raonic played his last match at the 2024 Olympics, losing in the first round to Germany’s Dominik Koepfer.
“I have been the luckiest person to get to live out and fulfil my dreams. I got to show up every day and focus on just getting better, seeing where that will take me, and playing a game I was introduced to at eight-year-old by complete luck,” he added.
“Somehow, this became my entire obsession and childhood, and then became my profession and life.”
Raonic was born in Titograd, Yugoslavia (now Podgorica, Montenegro) and moved to Canada when he was three years old. He won his first ATP title at the Pacific Coast Championships in 2011.
“What’s next? I won’t be slowing down. There is so much more life to live, and I am as motivated and hungry as I was in 2011, when I broke through on tour. I will put the same effort and intensity into the next thing,” he said.
