Anett Kontaveit, No. 2 in the world in 2022 and just 27, ends playing career at Wimbledon

WATCH: Kontaveit's final press conference

It was not a surprise, but it still comes as a bit of a shock.

Anett Kontaveit, who rose to No. 2 in the world just last year, played the final match of her career Thursday at Wimbledon. The Estonian icon, who won her opener over Lucrezia Stefanini on Wednesday, 6-4, 6-4, fell to No. 32 seed Marie Bouzkova on Thursday, 6-1, 6-2.

The 27-year-old revealed the unfortunate news on Instagram a few weeks earlier, saying that "after several doctor’s visits and consultations with my medical team, I have been advised that I have lumbar disc degeneration in my back. This does not allow for full-scale training or continued competition."

Kontaveit began her rise to No. 2 in 2021, when she captured titles in Cleveland (WTA 250), Ostrava (500), Moscow (500) and Cluj-Napoca (250). Ranked 30th after following that season's US Open, the surge catapulted her all the way into the Top 8, granting her admission into the WTA Finals. There, she finished runner-up to Garbine Muguruza.

Not resting on her laurels, Kontaveit reached four finals in 2022, and won her sixth career title in St. Petersburg. The marathon victory—5-7, 7-6 (4), 7-5 over Maria Sakkari, in two hours and 57 minutes—was her 20th consecutive win on indoor hard courts.

Sadly, there would be no more epic finals for Kontaveit, though she did take part in another epic match: Serena Williams' last victory, at the 2022 US Open.

"I thought I didn't play a bad match at all," Konatveit said after her 7-6 (4), 2-6, 6-2 loss to the American. "Yeah, she definitely raised her level in the third set. She played amazing."

Her defeat on Thursday can similarly be viewed with a silver lining, given the physical discomfort Kontaveit is experiencing.

"It definitely is emotional, and yeah, it feels a little different," she said about her impending retirement after Wednesday's win. "But really excited that I get to play a few more matches here hopefully, and just do my best every time I walk on the court, and that's what I have been doing my whole career. Really want to do that for the one last time."

Iga Swiatek's tweet was hardly the only message of support and acknowledgement to Kontaveit, a favorite in the locker room and with fans. Daria Kasatkina told WTAtennis.com that, "I feel really sad about it, because Anett is one of my big friends on tour. Knowing that she's going to finish quite early, considering her age, it's breaking my heart.

"But I'm pretty sure Anett, she's gonna be a happy person in life. She got so many interests. She's a very interesting person, and I think she will find her place, for sure."

It only feels right to give the last word to Kontaveit, who lauded the atmosphere for her final singles match. (She is entered in the mixed doubles with Emil Ruusuvuori.)

"There's sadness, there's happiness, there's a bit of everything," she said. "It was incredible to have Court 18 full of people, so many people cheering for me.

"Of course, the match didn't go the way I wanted it to, but I was so happy to be able to play in front of so many people, that so many people that love me were able to see me play for the last time—in singles."