Lucy Shuker retires after 24 years with 139 career titles

Lucy Shuker retired from professional wheelchair tennis after 24 years when she played her final match on Wednesday at the Wheelchair Tennis Finals in Barcelona. The 46-year-old finishes her career with three Paralympic medals and a combined 139 singles and doubles titles.

Shuker represented Great Britain at five consecutive Paralympic Games, winning one silver medal and two bronze between 2012 and 2020 in the women's doubles alongside Jordanne Whiley. She reached nine Grand Slam finals and collected seven World Team Cup medals during her career. Shuker announced during Wimbledon this year that she would retire at the end of the season.

At the time of her retirement announcement she had 98 doubles titles and later achieved her target of 100 doubles titles earlier this month when she and Ruby Bishop won the WC50 Abingdon in Oxfordshire. Over her career she also won 39 singles titles, bringing her combined total to 139.

Shuker was awarded the British Empire Medal for services to sport in 2023 and served as Great Britain's flagbearer for the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paralympics in Paris. "I would like to congratulate Lucy on her fantastic career and thank her for the contribution she has made to wheelchair tennis both on and off the court," said the LTA's chief executive Scott Lloyd. "To compete at the highest level of the game for over 20 years is a remarkable achievement and testament to her dedication and professionalism. "She has been, and will continue to be, a passionate advocate for the development of the sport and we look forward to working with her to continue to grow the game for future generations."

Her final match saw Shuker and Ksenia Chasteau beaten 6-3 6-1 by the Dutch pairing of Diede de Groot and Aniek Van Koot. Shuker lived and trained in Somerset for much of her career and spent most of it ranked just outside the world's top 10.

She retires ranked 23rd in the world and as the British number two behind Cornelia Oosthuizen (20).