Shelby Rogers: From Charleston to the WTA Tour to retirement
It all started when Shelby Nicole Rogers was as she remembers it “around age four.” She clung to the wire fences around the Charleston and Mount Pleasant, S.C., tennis complexes, watching her older sister Sabra “taking tennis lessons. I kind of just went with her.”
Twenty-seven years later at age 31, Rogers retired from professional tennis with a loss in the 2024 US Open to eventual runner-up Jessica Pegula.
What a ride for the little girl from Charleston, touring the world for 14 years, making friends forever while impressing the tennis world with her outstanding competitiveness, great game and friendly disposition.
She left behind a career that climbed to as high as No. 30 and included quarterfinal appearances at the French Open and US Open. She scored victories over three No. 1 players - Serena Williams, Simona Halep and Ashleigh Barty – along with former No. 2 Petra Kvitova.
“For myself and for the game I felt it was the perfect time to announce it (retirement) this year at the US Open,” Rogers said recently.
“Last year at Wimbledon I tore my meniscus and had to have another procedure done on my knee. I felt from that moment the difficulty increased and I told myself I would give everything I had to rehab and perform for the 2024 season. Other injuries started to creep in and I felt that it was getting harder and harder to play at a level I wanted. I have such a high level of respect for the game and integrity all around that I didn’t want to keep playing just because.”
She followed Sabra into tennis at age six and was competing nationally five years later. “I just remember always wanting to be on the court. I loved the sport and the fun times I had on and around tennis courts,” she said.
“It was so awesome to have fun kids to play tennis with at Family Circle Cup. I was constantly challenged and pushed in practice matches which supplemented my time in between tournaments and allowed me to still develop my game.” Her hometown tournament is now named the Credit One Charleston Open.
After attending elementary school at First Baptist Church School in Charleston, Shelby decided to get more serious about tennis and became home-schooled. Sabra went off to a college career at Atlanta’s Emory University where she became a tennis team co-captain and an All-American.
Meanwhile, it didn’t take long for Shelby to start attracting the attention of college tennis recruiters. She won the USTA Girls’ National Championship at age 17 and turned pro in 2010, the same year as Charleston became recognized by the USTA as “America’s Best Tennis Town.”
Shelby didn’t accept any of the college offers, and continued to concentrate on a career as a professional tennis player. It was about 20 years later that she earned a bachelor’s degree in political science in 2021 from Indiana University East.
Shelby became the heart of women’s tennis in Charleston in those early years as Charleston tennis grew with her.
“I am very humbled and grateful for the opportunity to have grown up and pursued my dreams here in Charleston. I was surrounded by a lot of great people - coaches and players - as well as the Credit One Charleston Open that allowed me and a lot of the kids I trained with to play at such a high level. Throughout my entire career I have felt so much support from this city and it has been such a joy to see tennis grow so much here. There is nothing I want to see more than for that to continue. I feel that it is still just the beginning of tennis in Charleston.”
Rogers still remembers her early years at the Family Circle Cup where she served as a ball girl.
“I just remember being in awe of all of the players and how awesome they were. I loved being in the action and getting to see how they handled different moments on court. I have so many great memories from having up close interactions with players and this is a big reason why I always treated them with respect during my matches. I was so inspired by seeing these players up close and one of my favorite memories was giving Jennifer Capriati the championship flowers and she kissed me on the cheek and said, ‘One day you will play here!’ “
Of course, Rogers had her own heroes. “I really loved watching Steffi Graf, Jennifer Capriati, Lindsay Davenport and Kim Clijsters.” But her favorites were Roger Federer and Clijsters.
Rogers dreamed about pro tennis at an early age.
“From the age of seven I told everyone that was my dream. I think around 15 or 16 I really thought, ‘Ok, maybe this can happen’ and then I started seeing results in pro tournaments before I made the decision to turn pro,” she said.
When Rogers went out on the pro tour as a teenager she said, “I had so many goals for myself and I wanted to go to so many new cities. I enjoyed traveling and meeting new people and trying new food, but it took me awhile to get comfortable around the other girls on tour and feel like I fit in.”
And, there were injuries, always seeming to come into play when she was at her best. She underwent three knee surgeries in seven years.
“I think I learned a lot about myself going through multiple injuries. It’s a part of any athlete’s life but it was way more difficult mentally than I expected. I am grateful for these circumstances because I was able to develop a lot of mental skills and routines that I still use today. Journaling was a huge part of this journey and I learned that I am able to get through some pretty difficult things and still find a way to enjoy the process.”
The world travel is what all successful pro tennis players have to deal with. “The destinations and experiences are unforgettable,” said Rogers, who resides in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., with her husband John Slavik and their two dogs.
“I learned so much traveling the world, about other cultures and ways of life and how to conduct myself. The traveling is also the toughest part of this lifestyle. Being on the road constantly, away from friends and family, long travel days and countless delays and cancelled flights. The logistics can be exhausting.”
The exciting moments that most pro athletes sometimes have usually made up for the exhausting travel.
“I think there are a lot of great moments that make up my memories. Some might say my first Grand Slam quarterfinal at the French Open, or the quarterfinal of the US Open. Others (might say) beating Ash Barty in a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium at the US Open or beating Serena. For me it was the week in and week out work that I was able to put in, some wins after really tough losses, or my first win in Charleston after 13 months off tour and I am so proud of representing Team USA and winning the Billie Jean King Cup.”
And now, Rogers would love to go into tennis commentary where she has filled in at times and has shown great promise. Or she might play another role in tennis one of these days. For now, she has many memories.
--
James Beck was the 2003 winner of the USTA National Media Award for print media. A 1995 MBA graduate of The Citadel, he can be reached at Jamesbecktennis@gmail.com.
Related Articles
Sign up for our Newsletter
Download the USTA App
