Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the former Australian Open runner-up and world number five, announced his retirement from tennis on Tuesday after losing in the first round to Casper Ruud at Roland Garros.
Tsonga, who declared last month that he would retire after the French Open, was defeated by the Norwegian eighth seed 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (7/4), 6-2, 7-6 (7/0).
“I hope that the world will soon experience the same level of tranquility that I did today. Roland Garros, thank you. Thank you very much, Mister Tennis. I adore you, “Tsonga stated.
Tsonga electrified the audience on Court Philippe Chatrier by grabbing the first set, but Ruud, who won the Geneva title last week, came back to win the following two sets.
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In the fourth set, the Frenchman broke for a 6-5 lead but could not serve out, so he called for the trainer before the tie-break and took a medical timeout to address his right shoulder.
Ruud cruised to victory over a visibly ill Tsonga, who fought back the tears as his 18-year career ended.
A video homage to Tsonga’s career highlights played inside the stadium while friends, family, and teammates gathered on the court for his retirement ceremony.
Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer, whom Tsonga defeated in Grand Slams, offered video messages of support.
Unseeded Tsonga lost the 2008 Australian Open final to Djokovic, who won his first of 20 Grand Slam titles.
He reached the French Open and Wimbledon semi-finals twice and finished second to Federer at the 2011 ATP Finals.
Tsonga and Michael Llodra won Olympic silver in men’s doubles in London in 2012, and he was a key member of France’s Davis Cup victory in 2017.
He also won two master’s championships, in 2008 in Paris and 2014 in Toronto.
His ranking has dropped to 297 due to his troubles with various injuries in recent years.
