French veteran Gael Monfils ended his Grand Slam career following a 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 second-round defeat to 20-year-old American Learner Tien at the U.S. Open
Spectators at Louis Armstrong Stadium honoured the 40-year-old showman with an emotional standing ovation, highlight montage, and commemorative poster
Monfils established a late-career milestone in New York by becoming the oldest man to win a U.S. Open match since Jimmy Connors in 1992
Gael Monfils ended his Grand Slam career with a second-round loss at the U.S. Open on Thursday night in New York. The 40-year-old Frenchman, who plans to retire at the end of the year, fell 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 to Learner Tien. Tien is 20, exactly half Monfils’ age.
The result closed Monfils’ run on one of tennis’ biggest stages after more than two decades. It also carried a neat passing-of-the-baton note — Tien had asked for and received Monfils’ autograph after beating him in Montreal last month.
Monfils’ final appearance at Flushing Meadows came 21 years after his debut in 2005, two months before Tien was born in Irvine, California. The pair had never met before facing each other twice in the past 30-some days.
“It was incredible,” Tien said. “I told him when we played in Montreal, ‘I hope we get to play one more time.’ I know we didn’t have that many opportunities left, so I’m super happy it happened here.”
Armstrong Farewell
The crowd gave Monfils a loud send-off. Fans at Louis Armstrong Stadium chanted “Mon-fils! Mon-fils!” and rose for a standing ovation after his final shot went into the net.
Monfils waved to the spectators before packing his gear. He paused to watch a video tribute of his career moments on the arena screen, accepted a souvenir poster from tournament organizers and listened as his name rang across the New York court for the final time.
“It was an unbelievable atmosphere,” Monfils said. “Amazing energy on the court. It was really nice. You always want to give a little bit more, you know, you want to stay a little bit more. I gave my absolute all.”
He then reflected on his bond with the New York crowd. “It's been a long ride,” Monfils said, calling it his second-best crowd after Roland Garros in Paris. “It’s been an absolute honor for me to play all these years in front of you. I tried my best, tried to perform high-professional tennis but also give you a great show, and you guys give me great love, so I will never forget that.”
The tournament provided another personal highlight. Monfils progressed to the mixed doubles semi-finals alongside his wife, Elina Svitolina. He said jokingly that New York was the first and last time the pair would share a competitive court.
Monfils still leaves with a place in the record books. He became the oldest man to win a match at the tournament since Jimmy Connors in 1992, when Connors did so on his 40th birthday.
One more win would have pushed him deeper into history. Had Monfils beaten Tien, he would have become the oldest man to reach the third round in nearly a half-century, dating to 42-year-old Ken Rosewall in 1977.
He also created one more memory with his family. Monfils reached the mixed doubles semifinals with his wife Elina Svitolina and joked it was the first and last time the couple was playing tournament tennis together.
Monfils is the third player to announce this would be his final Grand Slam, after Kei Nishikori and Stan Wawrinka. Nishikori lost in qualifying, while Wawrinka took a late wild card and went out in the first round.
“I'm just me, Gael Monfils,” he said. “I think some people might like me, some not. Some people think I’m fun, some not. Some people think that I entertain them, some maybe not. So I’m all right with everything.”
Retirement plans are already in place. Monfils said he has signed on with a Swiss company to work in wealth management and expects to stay close to the sport while Svitolina continues to play.
“I’ll be around definitely no matter what for Elina a little bit,” Monfils said, “but I will be more a finance guy.”
