ROME -- Former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone revealed on Friday she is cancer-free.
"They diagnosed me with a [malignant] tumor. It was the toughest fight that I've ever faced," the retired Italian player said in a video on Instagram.
"The best thing is that I was able to win this battle.
"When they told me a few days ago, I exploded with joy. I'm already ready to take on new projects that I had in mind but wasn't able to carry out."
Schiavone, 39, won the 2010 French Open and was a finalist at Roland Garros the following year. She reached a career-high ranking of No. 4 in 2011.
Schiavone retired in 2018 and coached former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki briefly at the start of this year.
Wozniacki recently announced that she plans to retire after the upcoming Australian Open.