Richard Gasquet's lengthy and impressive career will end next year after the Frenchman announced his retirement from professional tennis.
Gasquet burst onto the scene at the age of just 15 when he defeated Franco Squillari at the 2002 Monte-Carlo Masters, becoming the youngest player to win a Masters-1000 match and the youngest at ATP level since 1988.
Before that, Gasuqet was known to dedicated tennis fans as an outstanding junior player. He played and defeated Rafael Nadal, who announced his retirement, when they were both 12 years old.
The French media placed heavy expectations on Gasquet because of how good he was as a junior player. They became even more significant when the 38-year-old achieved impressive results in the early stages of his professional career.
Gasquet stunned Roger Federer in the quarterfinal of the 2005 Monte-Carlo Masters. He was also competitive in a 6-7, 6-4, 6-3 defeat to Rafael Nadal in the semifinal, the closest he ever came to beating the Spaniard.
That was followed a few weeks later by reaching the final of the Hamburg Open, a Masters-1000 tournament at the time, and another final at that level at the 2006 Canadian Open. Federer defeated him in both finals.
After an impressive run to the semifinal of the 2007 Wimbledon Championships, the pressure from the media to get to the very top began to weigh on the Frenchman, and his results and performances dropped.
He was also hindered by a provisional suspension for testing positive for cocaine in 2009, but Gasquet was cleared because it happened after accidental contamination when he visited a nightclub.
The Frenchman has enjoyed a solid career since, including two more Grand Slam semifinals, 16 ATP Tour titles, and 600 ATP victories. Gasquet also reached another Masters-1000 final in Canada in 2012.
Some have called Gasquet an underachiever, but this is unfair. He was unfortunate that his peak coincided with Novak Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal being at or near their best. While the 38-year-old was a terrific player in his prime, he was not as good as the three best players ever.
Those claiming Gasquet is an underachiever do not consider his longevity and the pressure that was placed on him. It is impressive that he has had such a great career after what he went through with media expectations and when he was provisionally suspended.
Gasquet's longevity is also among the best in the sport's history. After winning the title on home soil in Cassis, he became the third-oldest ATP Challenger Tour champion ever.
In an interview with L'Equipe, Gasquet announced he would retire after the 2025 French Open. The former quarterfinalist in Paris said it was the best and most obvious place for him to end his superb career.
"I think that it is the best moment for me to do it. It is the best tournament to do it. It’s magnificent, we have the chance being French to be able to stop in these kind of incredible places."
"An end, it’s always complicated, all the former great players always told me it’s not easy to announce. You never know when, how, where. Here, in any case, it is obvious.”
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