“I Could Stop at the End of Next Year”: Richard Gasquet Opens up on Retirement Plans

French tennis ace Richard Gasquet has dropped a broad hint on his future in tennis. The Frenchman hinted that he may retire from the game at the end of the next ATP season.

Richard Gasquet says he is happy to be still playing

A veteran at 34, Gasquet said that he still loves travelling to tournaments and competing for titles, adding he has no immediate retirement plans. Speaking on the sidelines of the recent Paris Masters, Gasquet opened up on his future in the game.

“I’m happy that I’m still here, that I’m still competitive and that I’m still playing in these big tournaments. I’m quite proud of that,” the Frenchman said. 

Richard Gasquet not sure if he can play for a few more years

When asked specifically on how much longer he planned to carry on, Gasquet said that he was still undecided on his future. “I still hope to play for a few more years, though I don’t know if that will be possible,” Gasquet said. “I’ll play next year, though you know what might happen. I could stop at the end of next year, or I could carry on, but as long as I can continue playing I will do so.”

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The Frenchman, who holds 15 ATP titles, said he isn’t too bothered about his drop in rankings and feels lucky to be still playing at his age. Currently at 56th in the ATP rankings, Gasquet has featured in the Top-10 for the last four years.

Richard Gasquet would have ‘struggled’ to improve ranking this year

Any struggle that Gasquet might have faced hasn’t taken away from his competitive edge and hunger for titles. He has set sights on picking up enough ranking points in the ongoing Sofia Open to finish in the top-50 for the 14th time in his career.

On finishing inside the world’s top-100 since 2005, Gasquet said, “I first got into the top-100 in 2003 and I never imagined then that I would still be playing tennis in 2020.”

Gasquet reached his highest ranking of No. 7 in July 2007. He conceded that he would have struggled to finish higher in the rankings, even if the season hadn’t been curtailed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I was injured in March. I have to recognize that not being able to play in March and April [because of the shutdown] didn’t really affect me,” Gasquet said.

Gasquet’s best showing in Majors were semi-final appearances in 2013 at the US Open and at Wimbledon in 2007 and 2015.