Monfils says his Slam adieu with 2nd-round loss

NEW YORK -- A few minutes before stepping out for what would be his last Grand Slam match at the US Open on Thursday, Gael Monfils sat on a sofa in the corridor beneath Louis Armstrong Stadium, right leg across left knee, seemingly without a care in the world. Moments later, the 40-year-old Frenchman, one of the best entertainers in the sport for more than two decades, stepped out on court for his 52nd US Open match, a second-round battle with No. 14 seed Learner Tien that ended in a 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 loss to the talented young American. "It's been a long ride," said Monfils, who was presented with a framed picture of himself, after watching a video montage of his best US Open moments. "I came here in 2003 for the juniors for the first time and here I am in 2026. Thank you very much. I felt all the love. I can tell you guys you are my second-best crowd after Paris, so you are up there. "Just to tell you it's been an absolute honor to play all this year, try to play my best, perform my best tennis but also give you a great show." One of the best athletes to play the game, Monfils bows out of Grand Slam tennis after 201 matches in the majors, his 131 wins the most by any Frenchman. He will play a few more tournaments in the coming months before saying goodbye to the sport on home soil at the Paris Masters. In many ways, the result Thursday night didn't matter. In a packed Armstrong stadium, Monfils had the noisy crowd in the palm of his hands, as he has for the majority of his career, which has seen him win 13 titles. But for Monfils, statistics tell only half the story. A brilliant junior, Monfils won three straight boys titles in 2003, in the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon, making the game look ridiculously easy, his languid nature matched with unparalleled athleticism. No one covered the baseline in as few strides as Monfils. No one retrieved balls as effortlessly. Monfils withstood serious knee issues to become a regular fixture in the world's top 10, and although he never quite achieved what was expected of him, reaching just two Grand Slam semifinals, it was his charisma, speed and sheer athleticism made him stand out. On Thursday, his wife, Elina Svitolina, sat courtside throughout the match, cheering her husband on one more time, urging him to dig deep and pull out another of his great comebacks. But Tien, coached by former French Open champion Michael Chang, was too consistent, too quick and too street-smart for Monfils, twice his age. Tien won in a deciding set when they played in Montreal last month, and this time it was in straight sets. Tien peppered the Monfils backhand, drawing errors when he needed them, and although Monfils still produced his usual showreel of outrageous points, the result never really seemed in any doubt. Tien mixed in some nice drop shots, almost cruel in the circumstances. A semifinalist in New York in 2016, Monfils dropped serve midway through the first set to fall behind and repeated the feat in the second, before squandering a 0-40 in the eighth game that would have put him level at 4-4. Instead, Tien doubled his lead. In the third set, Monfils continued to fight, all the way to the end, but after slipping another break down, his Grand Slam career ended with a forehand into the net. "Thank you so much for this year," he told the umpire as he left, while Tien urged Monfils to consider playing "one more time in Paris." "Monfils, Monfils, Monfils," rang around Armstrong stadium one more time as the Frenchman sat on his courtside bench one last time. There will be more outings, but his New York adventure, and his Grand Slam career, is over. "I think playing him in Montreal really helped with the nerves," said Tien, who got his first autograph from Monfils a few weeks ago. "I really didn't want the greatest comeback of all time to happen to me tonight. It's very special to win in your home country, so I'm really happy. It was an honor. Sorry for drop shot-ing you so much tonight."