French tennis player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga announced on Wednesday that he will end his 18-year career after the French Open this year.
The 36-year-old released the announcement through a YouTube video, but he will provide more details this weekend at his press conference at the Monte–Carlo Masters tournament.
In the video, Tsonga admitted that he’s been considering retirement for a few years now, especially after his knee surgery in 2018 and back issues last season.
“My head tells me ‘but you can play all your life’ and at the same time, your body reminds you that your abilities to surpass yourself are no longer there,” Tsonga said. “My body is telling me ‘you can’t go any further than what I give you’ and I used to do that every day before.”
But, why did Tsonga choose to end his career at Roland Garros? Well, for one, it gives him a chance to play for his home crowd. He said it will be his 15th French Open appearance, adding that it’s where he feels like he is at his best.
“I hope that I will stay in shape before and be able to be who I have always been at this tournament,” Tsonga said. “The goal is to be myself, to be Jo-Wilfried Tsonga the tennis player. I like to perform well, I have always wanted to play well. I have always set myself high goals to try to get what I can. For me, this will be the opportunity to do it one last time.”
Tsonga has reached the French Open semifinals twice in his career, in 2013 and ’15. He was the Australian Open runner-up in ’08 to Novak Djokovic. He has yet to win a grand slam tournament, but he currently has four career titles.
Roland-Garros begins on Sunday, May 22 and runs through Sunday, June 5.
