For most of the tennis professionals gathered in Europe, it’s spring — a time of blossoming daffodils and tulips, gentle showers, and red clay courts offering unlimited hopes for the future. But for three esteemed ATP pros it may feel more like fall at Roland Garros in May, for they are in the autumn of their careers.
David Goffin is now a 35-year old outlier, Gael Monfils is 39 and still the showman, and Stan Wawrinka is a Methulasan 41 and still a romantic, in love with tennis. All three are imminently playing in their final French Open, and their departure will sadden legions of fans — and leave a few gaping holes in the game.
David Goffin has such a crafty, silken game that he was nicknamed “the magician” by his peers. He is also an ATP outlier. A former world ATP No. 7 and three-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist, Goffin has consistently punched above his weight (in boxing parlance, he’s a “super welterweight”).
But now Goffin’s arms are tired, punched out. Ranked No. 236, Goffin is in the midst of an undeclared retirement tour, hoping to compete via qualification or a wild card in his final French Open.
As a 21-year old apprentice pro in Paris in 2012, Goffin lost in qualifying. But he slipped into the main draw as a lucky loser thanks to the last minute withdrawal of — wait for it — Gael Monfils. Goffin then stunned observers by winning three successive matches to become the first lucky loser to reach the fourth round in nearly two decades. The man waiting for him there: No. 3 seed Roger Federer.
If, like me, you had rushed out to Court Suzanne Lenglen upon hearing that an unknown 21-year old Belgian had just taken the first set from Federer, you could be forgiven for thinking this was some kind of a prank. After all, Goffin had said he still had a poster of Federer above his bed back home in Belgium. Also, Goffin was small (5’10”), but he sure was scrawny (150 lbs). Yet his game was clearly magical, smooth as flowing water, short on power but long on consistency, versatility and strategic and tactical acumen. Magic.
Over time, Goffin proved to be a standout Davis Cup performer — 29-6, with singles wins over the likes of Marin Cilic, Nick Kyrgios, and Jo Wilfried Tsonga. He won six singles titles and, in his finest moment, he qualified for and reached the final of the ATP Tour’s eight-man, season-ending championships where he was beaten by Grigor Dimitrov.
Novak Djokovic has said that Goffin’s game was clean to the point of being “beautiful for the eye.” Rafael Nadal observed that Goffin was a “very complex player.”
But keeping up in a game at a time when power was becoming the standard currency was challenging. While widely celebrated as “the thinking man’s” player, the effort required to win by his wits and professional discipline ultimately took its toll.
“I would have liked to continue for a few more years, but it’s complicated,” Goffin recently told reporters in Monte Carlo, after he lost in qualifying. “Tennis is at a very high level right now. You can’t be 100 percent all the time — physically, tennistically. You can’t just win a few matches and continue. This is not how it works… I realized it was the moment (to retire) for me. I didn’t feel good anymore, and once you realize that, making the decision is easy.”
Goffin said that making the decision to quit has left him feeling liberated: “There is something inside that it’s released, and I like what I feel.”