August Chris Oddo 08/18/2017

Melanie Oudin, Architect of U.S. Open Drama, Retires at 25

Melanie Oudin, architect of one of the more surprising and inspiring U.S. Open quarterfinal runs in recent memory in 2009, has announced her retirement from professional tennis.The 25-year-old announce the news on Twitter, saying that her recent run-ins with injuries had proved to be too much to overcome.“Unfortunately since 2012 I have been struck with numerous health issues and injuries,” she wrote. “I would work so hard to come back after being out and then something else would happen. It has definitely taken a toll on me mentally and physically over the last five years or so.”In 2009 Oudin was the darling of the U.S. Open when she upset four Russians–Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Elena Dementieva, Maria Sharapova and Nadia Petrova–to reach the quarterfinals.Oudin has not been ranked inside the Top 100 since the summer of 2013. She was diagnosed in 2014 with a form of arrhythmia and had surgery to repair it, along with another surgery to remove a growth near her eye.She had a second heart procedure done to remove more tissue from the area in 2015.“After much thought, I have decided to make the difficult decision to retire from professional tennis,” she wrote. “Tennis has given me so much and I will always be grateful.”Read Oudin’s full statement on Twitter here: