Gaël Monfils bids farewell to Grand Slam tennis following US Open loss to Learner Tien

Gaël Monfils’s final grand slam appearance was a quieter one rather than the dramatic five-set exit many expected. The tennis great, known for his showmanship, did not get the blockbuster farewell. He had already delivered a thrilling five-set fightback at his home French Open earlier this year, ending well after midnight, and produced signature moments in his first-round win this week, including a mid-air forehand.

Instead, his last grand slam match was a 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 straight-sets loss to No 14 seed Learner Tien in the second round of the US Open on Thursday night. The 40-year-old, who has said he will retire after this season, ends his career as one of the greatest players to never win a major.

The 20-year-old Tien wore Monfils down, dragging him into long rallies and forcing constant baseline movement on a muggy night at Louis Armstrong Stadium. The Frenchman’s usual flashes of brilliance were fewer, but he kept the crowd engaged, praising the “unbelievable atmosphere” and saying he was proud to have given it his all.

“You always want to give a little bit more, you want to stay a little bit more,” he said. “I gave my absolute all, but Learner was a really tough one tonight.”

Monfils emerged in the golden age of the men’s tour, alongside Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. He has won nearly 600 singles matches and earned $25m, reaching the semifinals of a grand slam just twice, at Roland Garros in 2008 and the US Open in 2016. His style, featuring tweeners, overheads and dramatic point-saving movement, drew as much admiration as trophies would have.

Once ranked as high as sixth, he had dropped to No 311 and entered this US Open on a wildcard. He had only played two tour-level events since Roland Garros. Yet he remained his showman self, coming full circle from the 18-year-old in a baggy yellow tank top who made his US Open debut in 2005 in a grueling five-set loss to Djokovic.

His run began in last week’s mixed doubles, where he reached the semi-finals playing alongside his wife, world No 9 Elina Svitolina. He followed that with a 2-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-0 first-round win over 60th-ranked Paraguayan Adolfo Daniel Vallejo on the day he turned 40, becoming the oldest man to win a US Open match since Jimmy Connors in 1992. The Armstrong Stadium crowd sang “Happy Birthday” to him.

“I’m just me, Gaël Monfils,” he said, when asked how he wanted to be remembered. “I think I have been the same since I came on tour, with a lot of joy. … The most important for me is how my family lived all these years and how they will remind this ride was unbelievable.”

Thursday brought a tougher test against a composed lefty in Tien. Monfils held his own early but was broken in his third service game and began resting his hands on his knees or leaning over to adjust his shoe after points.

Tien was content to play long, patient points, finishing with 20 winners, fewer than Monfils’s 29, tiring his opponent’s legs. In the sixth game of the second set, Monfils leaned over a towel box after a 20-shot rally. A leaping backhanded volley energized the crowd and Monfils, but could not offset his 22 unforced errors in the set.

By the third set, even serving was taxing. He leaned on his racket before double-faulting twice in the seventh game, where Tien secured the break that decided the match. Tien saved break point in the eighth game after a desperate Monfils held up one finger, asking for a break after seven failed attempts. The break did not come.

Tien, into the US Open third round for the first time, said he felt grateful to share the court with Monfils and jokingly apologized for his drop shots.

“A couple months ago [in Paris], it was really tough, because you don’t really know what to expect and how you will really react,” Monfils said. “It was a little bit tougher for me to handle my emotion and play and perform, because I said that I want to say good-bye but be able to perform well. … It was much better, much easier for me to handle here.”

Tournament organizers presented Monfils with a framed picture in an on-court ceremony. He announced in his post-match news conference that his post-tennis life will include an office job with a Swiss wealth management company.

The ceremony closed with a career montage on the video board. In the third game of the second set, up 40-0, Monfils delivered a strong serve and attempted a no-look slice on the return. Such a shot could have been a winner in his prime. On this night, it landed in the net, and Monfils closed his eyes and laughed. This is 40, his expression seemed to say.