French Open 2026: Gael Monfils’ Roland Garros Farewell Ends in Heartbreaking First-Round Loss

Stan Wawrinka and Gaël Monfils waved goodbye to the French Open after they lost in the first round on Monday.

The curtain fell on Gael Monfils just before midnight when he lost to French countryman Hugo Gaston 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, 6-0.

It was the 39-year-old Monfils' final appearance at Roland Garros. Same went for the 41-year-old Stan Wawrinka, who earlier lost to Jesper de Jong 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 on another sweltering day.

Monfils and Wawrinka are retiring at the end of the year. They made their French Open debuts 21 years ago. Wawrinka went on to win three Grand Slam titles, and while Monfils has not reached a major final his popularity remains high.

Monfils walked out to chants of “Ga-el! Ga-el!” on Court Philippe-Chatrier. He received loud encouragement throughout, demanding applause when he hit spectacular winners and raising his arm when he won the third set.

But he also looked tired, often hunching over with his hands on his knees. After clawing back a two-set deficit he had little energy left against an opponent 14 years younger.

Monfils falls short

Monfils reached the semifinals at the 2008 French Open and the quarterfinals on three other occasions.

But ultimately he fell short after being touted for a great career following junior titles at the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in 2004.

He never won better than an ATP 500 among his 13 titles, and lost 22 finals — including three at Masters level. His reputation as a showman took precedence over his modest results.