Gasquet, who is Sinner’s next opponent to Roland Garros

“No regrets, no remorse. Only sometimes it happens that …” If in the Gasquet playlist they cut out a corner for 883, they would perhaps peeps certain sleepless nights. Of those in which the ceiling fixed and see “only” 16 ATP titles. Which become few if I think back that for some time they considered you the most credible alternative to Nadal on Earth. The French, with Rafa, never went close to sharing the hegemony on the red: 14 Slam in Paris for the Majorcan phenomenon, zero for Richard. Like Spanish, however, Gasquet has chosen to treat himself to a last special dance, inevitably at Roland Garros. Hair decreases more every day, the first service will be what it will be. But the reverse of Richard, 39 years old in about twenty days, always puts on those who make aesthetics a passion for tennis. The next opponent of Jannik Sinner entered Roland Garros for the first time with a Wild Card, at 15 years old, and did so today in the 22nd participation, after which he will say goodbye to tennis. Never as in the case of Richard Gasquet, you can really talk about swan singing.

France at Roland Garros

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At a certain point Terence Atmane, Richard’s opponent in the first round in a real generational derby, provoked him by serving from below without waiting for the opponent to be ready to answer. The public whistled copiously, the ’86 class did not even be disheveled. He continued in his tennis scalpel and etiquette, seasoned by that reverse to one hand that the French do not resign themselves to having to greet. Last dance? Not yet: “It is wonderful to be here again, I hope the audience also recharges his energies because I will need it” he told at the end of the game. Against Sinner he will rely on the lightness of those who have nothing more to demonstrate, a philosophy that basically pursued during the entire career. Especially in recent years: is there to take a tour of the Challenger circuit to recover points? No problem. A single ATP ending won in the last seven years, in Auckland against Norrie in 2023. Then the bitter check-out from the first 100 in the world arrived the following year: it was January 2024, yet another early Ko cost him the exit from the upper floors of the ranking after a record strip of 956 consecutive weeks. But since the data is always better to drop them all, Gasquet with success against Atmane at the Slam debut has also become the oldest Frenchman to win a match at Roland Garros since Bernard’s time in 1956.

The last dance?

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The ranking has changed, the reverse has not changed. Gasquet continues to hit one hand like the last aesthetics of the great tennis, keeping the plus step like certain statements on the eve of Roland Garros: “I will try to be ready on the physical and tennis plane. I took all the time possible”. He took advantage of Atmane’s accident, that yes, but he will now play with the lightness of those who no longer look at them. Like that time of over twenty years ago, when he took away a set to the Spaniard Alberto Costa at the absolute debut in that of Paris: he won the opponent, but the public applauded the French boy on the open scene. Which approaches the second round against Sinner also remembering certain precedents governed: three defeats on three crossings against the blue. The last time, precisely, at the last Roland Garros: Gasquet had presented himself immediately putting his hands forward: “It will be strange, but I am calm because I lived 22 years of career, I gave my best … I asked my body a lot, I have no regrets”. Special challenge, the one with Jannik: both were trained by Riccardo Piatti. Gasquet, however, was left by the coach, remaining very badly to tears. Who knows if when he meets Jannik, in the second round, he will also think back to this: “Those of my age know that the end is close” he said in 2024 at the conference, “I have passion for this game, but I take everything seriously”. And it continues to dance, hoping that it is not the last.