Former Wimbledon Champ Bartoli Reveals Her Half-Indian Boyfriend

Former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli of France has a strong Indian connection. The 30-year-old, who is the international event ambassador of this edition of the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM), spoke about how she is slowly getting used to all things Indian.

"I am extremely happy to be in Mumbai. This is not the first time though that I have come to India. In the 15 years that I played on the professional tennis circuit, I have been to Hyderabad, New Delhi, Kolkata and Bangalore.

Since my boyfriend (who she didn't name), who lives in London is half-Indian, his mother keeps taking me to Indian restaurants to taste spicy food. Though I'm used to eating bland food cooked in olive oil, over the years, I'm sure I will slowly get used to eating Indian food now," said Bartoli during a media briefing yesterday.

Bartoli surprised everyone when she announced retirement from international tennis soon after winning the 2013 Wimbledon women's singles title. "My body, especially my shoulder, could not take any more training. I had to train more than others because of my unorthodox way of playing. There was a stage during Wimbledon when I could not even brush my teeth because of the sore shoulder and that's when I was sure that I couldn't continue," she said.

Off tennis, Bartoli is currently into painting and is even venturing into creating her own fashion line. "I've loved painting and designing since I was a kid. I'm starting my own fashion line which will have signature jewellery, shoes, clothes and bags," she said.