Hong Kong squash star Annie Au retires at 31 after glittering career

• World No 11 ends career after reaching No 6 in 2012 and winning 17 world tour titles
• The 31-year-old retires after being part of Hong Kong women’s team that won gold at 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta

Hong Kong women's squash number one Annie Au Wing-chi announced her retirement after a glittering professional career of over a decade.

The world number 11 revealed the surprising decision on the Professional Squash Association's official website, saying it is time to move on since turning professional in 2004.

"I've enjoyed playing on the tour for the last 10 years as a full-time athlete," said the 31-year-old, who played her last match in Chicago three weeks ago. "To retire from squash is a tough decision, but I think it is time for me to have a change of life since the career of an athlete will end one day.

"I think the 2018/19 season was the best for me. I met some of the targets that I had set for myself a long time ago. The first ever Asian Games gold medal for myself, I was a quarter-finalist at the World Championship in Chicago and won my biggest PSA Tour title at the Macau Open.

"All of that was so meaningful to me. Last but not least, to have a career-high of world number six and to have made history for Hong Kong squash is my greatest achievement."

Au is the most successful Hong Kong player of all time, becoming the first player to reach the world's top 10 in May 2011. She reached her career-high ranking one year later and won 17 PSA titles from 27 finals. Her most recent title came on home soil at the HKFC PSA International Squash Open in September, five months after her biggest title win at the 2019 Macau Open, a World Tour bronze tournament.

Au has 384 matches under her belt on the PSA Tour, winning 244 of them, with her last match against Amanda Sobhy of the United States at last month's Windy City Open, where she lost the third round tie 3-2.

She also achieved success on the international scene, winning a gold medal in the team event at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, along with Joey Chan Ho-ling, Lee Ka-yi and Ho Tze-lok. She also won silver medals in both the individual and team events at the 2010 Asian Games, in addition to two bronze medals in 2014.

She also helped Hong Kong to a bronze medal at both the 2016 and 2018 WSF Women's World Team Squash Championship.

"Both the women's tour and women's squash definitely are growing compared to the time when I started. In terms of prize money, we can see a big increase. In some events it is even equal with the men's," she said. "It is a very good sign and as a player, I can feel that more people are enjoying women's squash and that rewards the effort that every player together puts in.

Au, a graduate of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said she would take a break before identifying her next field of choice in life.

"It is still a question for me (about what lies next after squash) but I think after taking some rest and exploration, I will find the answer quickly and tell everyone. Wish me good luck!" she said.

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