Three years after leaving elite competition in Reus, Anna Cortiles is putting her name back into the draw. The Catalan player has officially confirmed her return. Anna Cortiles’s return to Premier Padel is less a reversal than a reconstruction: coming back to the circuit without losing herself again.
An early retirement shaped by mental exhaustion
Cortiles’s departure in March 2023 was striking because of its timing. At 26, after 17 seasons in competition and seven years as a professional, she chose to stop after the Reus tournament, in the place where her story with a racket had begun.
Her farewell was not caused by a major injury or a sudden loss of level. She explained that she no longer enjoyed competing in the same way. Ranked world No. 59 when she stepped away, she had reached a point where competition drained rather than fuelled her game.
The break was therefore closer to an emergency exit than a definitive ending. Cortiles never truly left padel. Based in Miami, she became a coach, delivered lessons and clinics, and competed in the Pro Padel League and on the US circuit. That detour helped her recover a sporting identity free from the daily weight of the ranking.
Her Premier Padel comeback had already begun
The announcement did not come out of nowhere. In 2026, Cortiles had already tested herself at a high level: the Miami P1 qualifiers alongside Manuela Schuk, followed by the Buenos Aires P1 main draw with Marta Arellano. She also returned to winning ways by taking the FIP Bronze La Nucía title with Brittany Dubins.
Her official profile with the International Padel Federation lists those events. In other words, her body had started speaking the language of the circuit again before her words made the project official.
When will she return, and with whom?
For now, no exact Premier Padel return date has been announced and her future partner remains unknown. Cortiles therefore has no fixed comeback schedule yet. That caution matches her approach: she does not want to replace the pressure that drove her away with a new version of the same burden.
The challenge will still be substantial. The women’s circuit has become deeper in three years, draws are tougher and every round demands high execution speed at the net and in glass defence. Her experience, reading of the game and time spent competing in the United States provide useful foundations. Premier Padel pace, however, cannot be negotiated.
Cortiles is not trying to resume the exact career she interrupted in 2023. She is opening a new chapter with the same competitor but a different compass: reconciling ambition, enjoyment and identity.
