forced into his 24th career retirement, Gaël Monfils relapses and equals an unfortunate record

His body is still playing tricks on him. While absent from the circuit for seven months and playing in just his third match since his return to Indian Wells earlier this month, Gaël Monfils was forced to retire on Wednesday, March 22 for his entry into the Masters 1000 in Miami, against the French Hugh Humbert.

The two men were tied, three games anywhere in the first set, when the former world No. 6 felt sharp pain in his hand on serve.

Gaël Monfils left the courthouse grimacing. This is his 24th retirement on the main circuit, a record he now shares with German Tommy Haas and Croatian Janko Tipsarevic. This new injury adds to a long list for the Frenchman, who has just returned from a foot problem that caused him to miss seven months of competition since August 2022. He had already withdrawn from Roland-Garros and the grass season at due to heel surgery early last year. Then, he withdrew from Montreal in August, ending his season before the US Open.

Since his quarterfinal at the Australian Open just over a year ago, the Frenchman has played just 14 matches and is relegated 280th in the world.

Objective Paris 2024 if the physique allows it

“I’m scared of something. If I get hurt again, it’s over. Curtain up. I know I’m on a wire,” he said after his defeat at Indian Wells. Although the nature of his new hand injury is not yet known, it raises new concerns for the French player: “I hurt myself, I’m going home to do some tests and, from there, I’ll take care of myself, he said in Miami. Whether it’s two weeks, six or more, I don’t know. I hope as little as possible […] I don’t want to, but if someone tells me I broke my wrist and I have nine months left, well yes, you’re thinking about things… But I don’t think I have nine months left.’ stop”.

Gaël Monfils, who still aims to participate in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, wants to stay positive: “I will do anything to keep playing. I love what I do. You know, I could have quit a long time ago, but I still love it. I still enjoy it so much”.