Today at the French Open, former world no.5, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga had an emotional evening in front of his family and the home crowd. After losing to Casper Ruud in his last-ever match, he broke down in tears.
Incidentally, the Frenchman received huge tribute from the French Open authorities. His fellow countrymen – Richard Gasquet, Gael Monfils, Benoit Paire, have joined him at the Philippe Chatrier stadium. After the lovely tribute, he also spoke from his heart as he said his last words as a professional tennis player.
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Jo-Wilfried Tsonga says goodbye to tennis with his final words
As the Frenchman was about to give his final speech, the crowd erupted and gave him a huge round of applause. Listening to the roar, Tsonga could not hold his tears back. However, he did say a few words which will remain forever in the minds of tennis fans.
“I hope the world can soon find as much peace I found today. Thank you Roland. Thank you Mister Tennis. I love you. I realized my dreams and I wish every child in the world to do the same.”
Tsonga's last words : "I hope the world can soon find as much peace I found today. Thank you Roland. Thank you Mister Tennis. I love you." #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/0osjI0jJ24
— Tennis Majors (@Tennis_Majors) May 24, 2022
Meanwhile, his fellow French players also congratulated him as they joined him on stage to celebrate his amazing career. Gael Monfils, Benoit Paire, Gasquet and others gave him a big hug on the stage.
Les Bleus au rendez-vous pour saluer le Mousquetaire @tsonga7 : @GillesSimon84, @benpaire, @richardgasquet1 , @Gael_Monfils @p2hugz 💙🇫🇷#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/jRR6OtkQVz
— FFT (@FFTennis) May 24, 2022
Apart from that, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal, also gave him a lovely tribute through a video message and congratulated him for his amazing career. It is worth noting that the Frenchman had plenty of battles with the Big Four in the past and he won some of the very important matches against them.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga says thank you to everyone who had an impact in his career. "I realized my dreams and I wish every child in the world to do the same." #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/RucVuqgqOe
— Tennis Majors (@Tennis_Majors) May 24, 2022
Tsonga didn’t have a great ending to his professional career
Today, against Ruud, Tsonga started pretty well and won the first set in a tie-break, with the home crowd massively cheering for the French player. After the first set, Ruud came back in the match and won the second and third sets, producing scintillating tennis.
The curtain comes down 😢@CasperRuud98 ends Tsonga's farewell tour with a 6-7(6), 7-6(4), 6-2, 7-6(0) opening round victory.#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/jOA3HxObxG
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 24, 2022
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However, the fourth set saw Tsonga having serious troubles with his shoulder as he had to ask the umpire to call a doctor. Despite the treatment, he was in no condition to play the match.
It’s inspiring that he wanted to finish the match without retiring as the match reached its climax, he could not hold his tears back as the crowd cheered for him constantly. Despite the loss, Tsonga showed heart today and gave his all, with his opponent and the French crowd appreciating him for his inspiring tennis career.
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