Tennis: Monfils, a last dance that comes up short

Funny ending for the French showman. The former French number one should be on the courts in Lyon at the end of next week, but as part of an exhibition with his friends Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Richard Gasquet and Gilles Simon. Not as part of the first edition of the Grand Prix Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, a new ATP 250. Because the competition is obviously over for Monfils. It’s Wednesday morning’s drama.

On September 3, after his defeat against Lennard Tien in the second round of the US Open, Monfils nevertheless outlined the outlines of his farewell tour: “I am going to play the Lyon tournament, perhaps the Vienna tournament and normally “maybe” also La Défense Arena. And then I'm going to take a little break afterwards. » New York should therefore be the last act of a career which still seemed to await its Parisian epilogue. But since Monday October 5, his name has appeared on the list of players considered retired by the ITIA, the international agency for integrity in tennis. “This results in his withdrawal from the anti-doping control program and means that he is no longer authorized to participate in tournaments,” Adrian Bassett, head of communications for the independent organization in charge of the fight against doping in the world of tennis, confirmed to L’Equipe this Wednesday. A regulatory barrier therefore closes the door to a final meeting in Paris: “This exempts the player from anti-doping controls and, technically, he would have to undergo six months of out-of-competition controls before being able to return to competition. As Serena Williams did,” specifies the authority.