Australia’s Destanee Aiava has announced her plans to retire from professional tennis in a scathing and expletive-laden statement on social media.
The 25-year-old hit out at a tennis culture she said was “racist, misogynistic, homophobic and hostile to anyone who doesn’t fit the mould”, as she revealed plans to call time on her playing career at the end of 2026.
Aiava questioned whether the sport was worth the sacrifice and added that “tennis was my toxic boyfriend” in a wide-ranging and explosive Instagram post.
“Life is not meant to be lived in misery and half assed,” Aiava said in the statement.
“My ultimate goal is to be able to wake up every day and genuinely say that I love what I do – which I think everyone deserves a chance at.
“I’m 25, turning 26 this year and I feel so far behind everyone else, like I’m starting from scratch. I’m also scared. But that’s better than living a life that’s misaligned, or being around constant comparison and losing yourself.”
The former junior prodigy saved her most explosive assessment for critics and online trolls who have targeted her over the years for her results, appearance and the bright outfits that she wears.
“I want to say a ginormous fuck you to everyone in the tennis community who’s ever made me feel less than,” she said. “Fuck you to every single gambler who’s sent me hate or death threats.
“Fuck you to the people who sit behind screens on social media, commenting on my body, my career, or whatever the fuck they want to nitpick. And fuck you to a sport that hides behind so-called class and gentlemanly values.
“Behind the white outfits and traditions is a culture that’s racist, misogynistic, homophobic and hostile to anyone who doesn’t fit the mould.”
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As a child, Aiava was inspired to play tennis while watching Serena Williams at the Australian Open. After bursting on to the scene as a teenager she climbed to a career-high singles ranking of 147 in 2017, but has failed to consistently hit those same heights and currently sits at world No 321.
Melbourne-born Aiava reached the second round of the Australian Open for the first time in 2025 but did not qualify for the women’s singles draw at this year’s home grand slam. She was eliminated with partner Maddison Inglis in the first round of the women’s doubles at Melbourne Park in January and has not stepped on to the court for a competitive match since then.
Aiava recalled her “first lesson at Casey Tennis Club” in her retirement post before turning attention to a career that appeared to be full of promise after she reached the singles third round at Wimbledon as a 17-year-old in 2017.
“I often wondered what my life would have looked like if I’d chosen anything else and whether everything I sacrificed for this sport was actually worth the cost,” she said.
“There was a time in my career when I had reached the point that comes just before you make your big breakthrough, when the world is at your feet and nothing can touch you.
“I was only 17, unprepared and dangerously naive to the consequences of trusting the wrong people. The trajectory of my career was never the same after that.”
Aiava left the door open to what her 2026 tennis season might look like, as well as the next phase of her life beyond, saying that it will be “one led by purpose, creativity and passion”.