On her 35th birthday, Maria Sharapova announces her first pregnancy

Maria Sharapova, a retired tennis player, has announced that she is expecting her first child with her fiancé Alexander Gilkes.

On her 35th birthday, the former World No. 1 tennis player announced her pregnancy with an Instagram post, calling it the start of "precious beginnings."

She shared a photo of herself on a beach, beaming at the camera and cradling her growing baby bump. "Eating birthday cake for 2 has always been my specialty," the athlete wrote in the caption.

In the comments, friends and family congratulated the couple, including actor Lily Collins and Australian model Lara Worthington. "Thank you for making me a very, good happy boy," Gilkes wrote in the caption of his post. @mariasharapova, I look forward to a lifetime of loving and learning from you."

For more than a decade, the businessman has been associated with the royal family, attending the Cambridges' wedding in 2011 and Princess Eugenie's wedding to Jack Brooksbank in 2018.

Sharapova declared her retirement from tennis in February 2020, after 28 years of participation.

Sharapova stated in Vanity Fair about her decision to retire that she would miss playing tennis every day. "Tennis gave me a life by giving me my life," she wrote. "I'll miss my teammates and coaches." I'll miss sitting on the practice court bench with my father."