Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Ends His Career After 2022 French Open Elimination

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga retires after the French Open 2022
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga retires after the French Open 2022. Photo by Alfonso Jimenez/Shutterstock (12955717bn)

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga didn’t get that one last big run at French Open he probably hoped for. But that didn’t stop the packed Court Philippe-Chatrier from honoring him with a standing ovation after a 1-3 loss to Casper Ruud.

Tsonga previously said that the 2022 Roland Garros is his last tournament as a pro. And for one set, it looked like his farewell tour would last longer than expected. The 37-year-old player stunned the eighth-seeded Ruud and took the first set via tiebreak.

The second set was also decided via tiebreak, but it was Ruud who had the edge this time. The Norwegian then proceeded to take the following two and book his place in the second round while leaving Tsonga to say his goodbyes to tennis.

“The crowd was amazing today, supporting me and giving me the power to fight,” Tsonga said after the match. “I finished on the court playing like I did throughout my career. It’ll always be a good memory. In a way, I finished like I wanted to finish.”

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga retires with 18 titles on his resume but no Grand Slams. The closest he got to one was at the 2008 Australian Open when he reached the finals before losing in four sets to Novak Djokovic. Tsonga also has two semis at French Open and two semi-finals appearances at Wimbledon. His highest ranking on the ATP list was No. 5.

Harley loves music and tries to go to a music festival every summer. When he's not listening to music, he writes about movies, food and wine, art, and sport.