This time done for good. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, ex-French no. 1 and ex-world no. 5, was eliminated on Tuesday in the first round of Roland-Garros by Norwegian Casper Ruud, 7-6 (8/6), 6-7 (4/7), 2-6 and 6-7 (0/7) . At age 37, he removed his rackets for good, as advertised.
Despite the unconditional and loud public support, despite the resistance sometimes deserved by his age, Tsonga, who injured his right shoulder at the very end of the game and cried at the match point, bowed out after 17 and half a year. on the circuit where he set one of the best records in French tennis.
For his part, Ruud will face Finn’s Emil Ruusuvuori (61st), beating another Frenchman Ugo Humbert (46th).
Before leaving this world stage where he captivated the public with his amazing game, Tsonga offered himself a beautiful final dance: nearly four hours of fun, offering the public a spectacle that sometimes reminds him of his great players.
The sparks of Tsonga in the past crossed the court and made the stadium tremble with pleasure until the very end. Several big serves, strong forehands followed the net to end in a big smash, series of big forehand slaps that ended up on his opponent.
Tsonga prevented his finish in the fourth set and even broke to take a 6-5 lead. After a moving Marseillaise sung by nearly 15,000 people during the side change, Tsonga served to push the fight to a decisive round.
However, it was an injured Tsonga who came to serve, who did not normally hit the ball up to the point of serving with a spoon.
Due to severe right shoulder pain, he let Ruud go back to 6-6 and called the physio before the tiebreaker was played.
The latter did not work a miracle, nor did Tsonga. And his ultimate match point, he played it in tears in front of the standing stadium.
At the end of the match, Tsonga was honored with Philippe-Chatrier. Some of his former coaches and France teammates came to hug him in the middle of the court before receiving praise from Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Murray on a giant screen.
On the microphone, Tsonga left the French public with these words: I’m here in front of you, without my racket that will be my best friend for 30 years. Thank you Norah, my daughter, for being there every second of my life. My family is becoming my priority again and I hope the world will be quiet because of my peace now. Thanks. Roland, thank you Mr. Tennis, I love you.
From his first match on the ATP circuit in September 2004, a victory over Carlos Moya, to beating the latter at Roland-Garros, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga can be proud to be one of three players to beat Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic when they were number one in the world.
He was also one of three players to lose these three as well as Andy Murray in a grand slam.
Tsonga has one of the best records in French tennis with 18 ATP titles, quarter-finals played in four majors and a final at the Australian Open in 2008.
Not to mention a silver medal in doubles with Michaël Llodra at the London Olympics in 2012 and exploits in the Davis Cup, until the title in 2017, with his friends Gilles Simon, Richard Gasquet and Gaël Monfils. The new musketeers are at three and soon at two because Simon will retire at the end of the year.
The only thing Tsonga will miss is this grand slam title that crowns the greatest. A title that was more complex to win as he made his career during his reign Large 4.
He got his chance in 2008 when he reached the Australian Open final, where he lost to Novak Djokovic who has won his first of 20 majors so far.
Source: Radio-Canada
