Tsvetana Pironkova, who won her first career title in Sydney with a 6-4, 6-4 win over world No. 9 Angelique Kerber, admits she considered retiring last season. The Bulgarian came into the tournament ranked No. 107 but won eight matches (including qualifying) en route to the title, including wins over two other Top 10 players, Sara Errani and Petra Kvitova.
The 26-year-old became the first qualifier to win a WTA Premier-level tournament since Ekaterina Makarova captured the 2010 Eastbourne title.
“Well, I will lie if I say that I haven't [considered retirement], especially having so bad results last year. It crossed my mind few times,” Pironkova said. “One bad season, I said to myself, ‘Okay, it sucks, but you have to keep pushing. You have to go forward. Just take all your chances and do what you have to do, and then we'll see what happens.' So that's what I did.”