Monica Seles's brilliant career, disrupted by a stabbing and cut short by injury, ended quietly on Thursday.

The former world number one may never have fully recovered from being stabbed by a spectator during a match in 1993 but it was injuries that stopped her making a comeback, as well as a stubborn refusal to return at a level below her best.

Seles, 34, last played a competitive match at the 2003 French Open but thoughts of a comeback were never far from her mind.

"My personal theory is, if you're retired, you're retired," she told the Houston Chronicle last year. "You don't come back. And I don't feel like I'm ready to say that.

"I'm in such good shape. I only wish I was in this good a shape when I was playing. It's hard to accept that, just because of an injury, you're finished."

Photographs: Getty Images | Text: Reuters

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