'It's the right time' - Why Barbara Schett is 'not surprised' at Ashleigh Barty retirement from tennis

Eurosport expert Barbara Schett has given her reaction to the shock retirement from tennis of world No. 1 Ashleigh Barty at the age of just 25.

The Australian star, who became the first home player to win an Australian Open singles title in 44 years in January, shocked the sporting world on social media on Wednesday as she said she was leaving to "chase other dreams".

Barty shared the news via a video posted on Instagram in which she sat down and chatted with her good friend and retired Australian tennis player Casey Dellacqua about the decision.

"Today is difficult and filled with emotion for me as I announce my retirement from tennis," Barty, who has French Open, Wimbledon and Australian Open titles to her name, said in the conversation.

"I'm so happy and I'm so ready. And I just know at the moment in my heart, for me as a person, this is right. I am so thankful for everything this sport has given me and leave feeling proud and fulfilled.

"Thank you to everyone who has supported me along the way, I'll always be grateful for the lifelong memories we created together."

Tributes poured in from beyond tennis and across the sporting world after the Queenslander made the huge decision to call it quits, and Schett has said she was not particularly surprised.

"Well, to be honest, I was surprised that it happened today, but I'm actually not surprised that she is retiring," Schett told Eurosport.

"I always thought that she was not going to have a very long career. She did not love the game as much as maybe other players have loved it, and she is not driven by success or money or anything like that. So that was a bit of a surprise factor today, and you can imagine what is going on in Australia.

"But at the end of the day, to me, I thought maybe she was going to play at the US Open this year, and then she would call it quits, and she has done it now at the height of her game - and wow, what a champion!

"It is crazy to imagine: I think it is the first time, from my recollection, it is the first time in history that somebody has walked off being a reigning Grand Slam champion and a world No. 1. That is still a big decision, a big move to take, even though you might not have the motivation anymore.

"I'm sure it has been a big decision, but that decision has been in her head for quite some time. She said after she won Wimbledon that she was already thinking, 'oh, should I continue?', and I think especially what she has gone through in the last two years with all the travel restrictions. She has been away from home so much that it has made it even more clear to her that she probably wants to retire sooner rather than later.

"I actually thought when she won the Australian Open and I was sitting quietly that maybe this was the time, maybe she was going to announce it and shock everybody. She did not do it then. She probably needed to digest things a little bit. Think about it: it was awfully quiet after that Australian opening victory. She was not in the media, not in the press. She did not really do anything, and how she came to the decision today, I don't recall anybody on that high of a level, No. 1 in the world, winning two of the last three Grand Slams, as well.

"Retiring, that takes a lot of guts, but I think she really wants it, and I think this time it is for good. I do not think she is going to come back in three or four years again.

"I think it is the right time; she has achieved so much. Does she have the ambition to win four or five more Grand Slam titles? No, I don't think so, because there are other things that are more important to her. She said it so many times that being a better person and being a better version of herself, she kept on talking about it so much. She wants to be at home, she wants to play golf. She wants to get married. I'm sure she wants to have a family soon. So that is why it is not kind of surprising to me.

"Her big goal was to win Wimbledon - which is the ultimate goal for any tennis player - and she was speculating with that thought about whether to retire afterwards already. But then she thought, 'okay, the Australian Open, playing at home, I want to just take on that challenge'. And, boy, she has done a great job! When we remember looking back, she was so relaxed. She was really taking on that pressure. It always felt like she was so at ease on the court, and she was so relaxed because it did not matter to her.

"She just wanted to try her best, and then winning that title, I think that gave her even more of that confidence that this is the decision she wanted to take. She wants to start a new chapter. I call it chapter three now in her life, after that first time she retired, and then she had this unbelievable second career. Now it is chapter three coming up. She actually just texted me before because I sent her a message and she said, 'this is such the right time for me and taking the right decision'. She cannot wait for her normal life to begin.

"Again, as an Australian in the last couple of years, it was such a task to travel, to be away from home, and that really took a toll on her as well, and even more so, I think it is the right time for her.

"I think everybody's process is very different, but you can never be 100% sure as a player. When is it the right time to actually retire? In my case, I was thinking about it for about a year, and my problem was that I was just practising unbelievably well, but I could not deliver in matches anymore. I was tired of travelling. I was longing for this normal life, and I was talking to a lot of players, actually; I remember Amanda Coetzer. I was talking to Anke Huber because they retired before me, and I said, 'when do you know when it's the right time?', and they said, 'you will never know 100%'.

"You will only know once you take that decision if it was the right one or not, so I took that decision, and as soon it was out in the media, I was feeling so relieved, and I was like, 'okay, this is it'. I knew personally - and I was 28 when I retired - that I will not come back. This is a decision this was very thoroughly thought of, and I knew what I wanted to do afterwards as well. That day when I woke up in the morning, I felt so light. I felt like this huge backpack of 20 kilos was off my shoulders, and it just shows you when you are on the tour for many years - and I've only been on the tour for 12 years - but if you look at Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams, there is so much pressure constantly on you.

"You always think about training, you always get criticised, they are always in the limelight. People always judge you for something, and that has gone suddenly and you can actually do whatever you want. You wake up in the morning, you don't have to feel guilty if you don't practise, you don't have to justify anything, and that's the best feeling ever. I will never, ever forget that, and that is how Ash Barty must feel now."