Richard Gasquet said he plans to play on with his career, and Gilles Simon will bid for his 500th win tonight in Paris. By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday May 26, 2022
This week we witnessed the end of the brilliant career of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at Roland-Garros, the legendary Frenchman finishing his loss to Casper Ruud in tears after his body let him down yet again. But a victory later on Tuesday by Gilles Simon, and words by Richard Gasquet have softened the blow some.
For this excellent generation of French men's tennis, it ain't over til it's over.
Gasquet and Simon, part of a generation of French players that also features Tsonga and Gael Monfils, have shown us that this generation has not finished winning matches on the circuit.
Gasquet, who was ousted by Sebastian Korda in straight sets last night in Paris, says he plans to be back at Roland-Garros next year, if his body – and ranking – permits it.
“I'll do my best to be there next year. I'm not sure about that, but we never know what can happen in tennis,” Gasquet, who owns 574 lifetime wins, said on Wednesday. “But I really feel like playing and I've won quite a few matches this year since the beginning of the season and I'm still in the top 100 so I'll try and keep playing until the end.”
Even so, 35-year-old Gasquet (ranked 70) is already looking forward to a career as a commentator.
“I'm really focused on my tournament, but I really like commenting on matches, so I'm really interested in how one can comment during matches,” he said, when asked of the fact that he plans to commentate for French TV during the second week. “So it's an experience, I take it as an experience, I'll see how it goes and I would like to see how it works and, you know, it doesn't stop me from practicing and/or preparing for other tournaments, but we'll see how it goes on TV or on air and, you know, I still enjoy watching tennis, so it will be a pleasure for me to do that.”
36-year-old Simon, meanwhile, will bid for his 500th career win on Thursday on Court Philippe Chatrier, against American Steve Johnson.
At his age, it’s getting harder and harder to expect to win.
“It was a crazy match, an unexpected win,” the World No.158 said of his five-set victory over Pablo Carreno Busta on Court Simonne-Mathieu on Tuesday. “I was more scared to be ridiculous today than hoping I would win this match.”
Meanwhile Tsonga, who plans to play doubles with Gasquet today if his body lets him, will be watching his compatriots from the sidelines as their careers wind down.
“For me, all the way was nice. All the way was, you know, good to live. Even the sad moment, even the difficult moment,” Tsonga said. “I spent so many good moments, and I think the most important for me was to live this with people around me and be able to share the sadness sometimes, the happiness.
“Yeah, what I will remember for sure, it's all the relationships I had with people around. Yeah, that's what will stay.”
