French tennis player Gael Monfils has entered retirement, earlier than he had expected.
The 40-year-old had planned to retire at the end of the season. The sport’s drug-testing organisation, the International Tennis Integrity Agency, now lists him among players who have declared themselves retired, with his career officially over from 5 October.
The former No. 6-ranked player had received a wild card for a tournament in Lyon next week and was widely expected to end his career in front of his home fans at the Paris Masters from 31 October. He is currently ranked 254th. Lyon organisers said on Wednesday that Monfils will not play, citing “personal reasons.”
Monfils has not publicly confirmed his retirement. However, a player on the integrity agency’s list must be available for testing for six months before returning to competition, which makes a comeback unlikely.
A fitting farewell
Monfils bade farewell to Grand Slam tennis with a hard-fought loss to Learner Tien in the second round of the U.S. Open in September. Before bowing out, he became the oldest man to win a match at the tournament since Jimmy Connors in 1992, who also achieved the feat on his 40th birthday.
Over his career, Monfils won 13 titles. His best Grand Slam results came with two semi-final appearances, at the 2008 French Open and the 2016 U.S. Open.
Life after tennis
Monfils has previously said he is at peace with his decision to retire. He has signed with a Swiss company to work in wealth management.