Berlin

Three-time Grand Slam champion and former World No.2 Angelique Kerber on Wednesday announced that she is pregnant and will miss this season's last Grand Slam US Open.

Kerber, 34, last played at Wimbledon, where she fell in the third round. The German fully plans to continue her career. Talking to Twitter Kerber wrote," I really wanted to play the @usopen but eventually I decided that two against one just isn't a fair competition."

"For the next months, I will take a break from travelling the globe as a tennis player but then again, I believe it's for the best possible reason!"

"New York has often been a turning point in my career and it feels like this year will be no different in some way! From restarting my career in 2011 (ranked 92 she reached the semi-finals) to winning the title in 2016 and becoming #1 in the world."

Kerber the 2016 Australian Open and 2018 Wimbledon champion said that she was excited about her new chapter. "Being a professional athlete means everything to me but I'm grateful for the new path I'm heading to," she said.

Kerber is currently ranked No.52 in the world. In 2016, following her first two Grand Slam titles, at the Australian and US Opens, Kerber ascended to the No.1 ranking for the first time.She held the top spot for 20 successive weeks. Combined, she has had three separate stints as the No.1 player for a total of 25 weeks.

Earlier this year, Kerber won a clay event at the Internationaux de Strasbourg, her 14th career title.