Gael Monfils is determined to follow the example of athletes like Cristiano Ronaldo and LeBron James by playing until age 40. The Frenchman, who will turn 40 in September, hopes to compete at Wimbledon, Montreal, and the US Open before ending his career on home soil at the Paris Masters.
Monfils bid farewell to Roland-Garros after a 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, 6-0 loss to compatriot Hugo Gaston in the first round on Monday. He left the court to a thunderous ovation from the crowd, honoring his two-decade career. Monfils will retire at the end of the season, but for now, he is focused on maintaining his fitness to play at 40.
“Why do I want to go to America? Because I want to play until I’m 40. My desire is to become an athlete who plays until age 40,” Monfils said. “Like Stan (Wawrinka), LeBron, Cristiano, (Patrice) Evra — like all the athletes who have continued their careers until 40. That’s what I want to do. No matter what happens this summer, I’ll still train.”
The former world No. 6, who has achieved significant success on clay, acknowledged that the surface has become more challenging in recent years. He hopes to receive a wild card for the US Open and is also planning to play at Wimbledon and Montreal.
“Hopefully Wimbledon. Then I need to decide whether to go to Washington or not,” he said. “I think we’ll ask for Montreal, hopefully. I want to say goodbye to Montreal. Obviously, I’ll ask the French Tennis Federation for a wild card for the US Open. Hopefully I’ll get it. Asia is a bit vague, honestly. Then at the end of the year, I can tell you that I’ll play in Lyon, the new tournament. Nicolas (my agent) wants me to play in Vienna, and then hopefully Paris.”
Monfils, who has won 13 ATP titles, reached the French Open semifinals in 2008 and was a key member of France’s Davis Cup teams in 2010 and 2014.
