Ferrero ready to embrace life after tennis

Almost a decade on from terrorizing his opponents to win the 2003 French Open, Juan Carlos Ferrero is now looking forward to swapping his tennis headband for a business hat.

While fellow 30-something Roger Federer has not ruled out playing at the Rio Olympics in 2016, Ferrero cannot see himself punishing his 32-year-old body for another four years.

"I think there is a long life after tennis, so I've been preparing for this in the last four, five years... like (setting up the) hotel or the academy or the tournament in Valencia," Ferrero told reporters on Sunday after reaching the second round of the French Open.

During a career that has spanned 14 years, earned him 16 titles and almost $14 million in prize money, Ferrero has enjoyed being at the top of the sport.

However, in 2012 he has struggled to string together back-to-back wins, achieving the feat just once in eight tournaments this season, and will assess his future at the end of the year.

"Everything will depend on how fit I feel. If I feel in good shape and if I still feel motivated, and I'll also take a look at my ranking," said the 44th-ranked Spaniard, who owns the Hotel Ferrero, situated at the foot of the Mariola Mountains, near his native Villena.

"If I am at 80, 100, and I have to fight in the qualification rounds (and) after such a career, I can't start back from scratch.

"So, my intention was to continue playing until the end of this year. (From) October, I'll see how things go, and at the end of the year, if I'm ranking 25th or 30th, I'll continue.

"But if my ranking goes down to slot 80, 90, maybe I'll quit."

(Writing by Pritha Sarkar in London, editing by Matt Barker)