Martina Hingis to retire after WTA Finals

SINGAPORE: Martina Hingis is playing her farewell tournament and will bid adieu to the sport for the third time this week.
The 37-year-old Swiss, who along with Taipei's Yung-Jan Chan are the top-seeds in the BNP Paribas WTA Finals, extended their winning streak to 19 matches on Thursday when they advanced to the semifinals. In the last-eight clash, Hingis-Chan, who enjoy a flawless 9-0 record in finals this season, beat the 20thranked German-Czech pairing of Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Kveta Peschke 6-3, 6-2.
The 37-year-old, a five-time Grand Slam singles winner, who pushed her major doubles titles to 13 when she won the US Open with Chan, also has seven mixed-doubles titles, said she wanted to go out when on top.
“I told Latisha (Chan) that this would be my last year, she knew. I couldn't ask for a better finish,” Hingis said. “It's perfect timing. You want to stop on top and not when you're already going backwards.”
Hingis and Chan, joint No.1s, who have a win-loss record of 59-10 for the season, said: “I'll be always part of the game of tennis. Somehow we will be connected.”
Hingis first retired from tennis in 2003 with injuries. She returned in 2006 and tested positive for cocaine during Wimbledon the following year after which she retired. The Swiss was subsequently slapped with a two-year ban. In 2013 she returned as a doubles pro.