MOSCOW (AP)—Former third-ranked player Nikolay Davydenko has confirmed his retirement from tennis.
Davydenko has not played on the ATP tour since the French Open in May and made his announcement on the sidelines of the Kremlin Cup tournament in Moscow on Thursday.
The 33-year-old Russian said a series of injuries in recent years prompted him to retire. He said the injuries ''still disturb me and it's hard to fight them,'' and that he can't produce ''a good result anymore.''
Davydenko won 21 tour titles and the 2009 ATP finals, but never managed to reach the final of a Grand Slam tournament despite being a four-time semifinalist. His final match was a straight-sets loss to Robin Haase in the French Open first round in May.
“Unfortunately, for some years now, I have been struggling with injuries. It’s hard for me to talk about it. I have been thinking when to announce it," Davydenko said. "The time has come. I have my whole life to live. I officially announce my retirement from professional tennis.
“I decided to retire in June after Roland Garros. I felt I could not play at the level I used to play at. I practised twice a day, but I felt I couldn’t achieve the result I wanted. But I was waiting for the moment when I would wake up and say to myself it was enough.”
Davydenko finished in the Top 50 for 10 straight years from 2003-2012. He held a 6-5 career edge over Rafael Nadal, including winning six of their seven hard-court clashes. He was investigated over match-fixing claims in 2007 by the ATP but cleared the following year.