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Will Amelie Mauresmo bid tennis farewell at the French Open?

The former Wimbledon and Australian Open champion has had a wonderful career, but there's been a lack of fire in her recent performances.

by Chris Goldsmith on 10 March 2008

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Amelie Mauresmo: Will she retire after the French Open? (Gettyimages.com)

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There is no doubting that Amelie Mauresmo has been France's best woman ternnis player over the past 15 years since she turned professional in 1993 at only 14 years of age.

She took over from Sandrine Testud, Mary Pierce and Natalie Tauziat as a superstar in her country, amid numerous stories of her off court 'lesbian' private life, which surely didn't help in her rise up the rankings.

Mauresmo currently lies in 27th spot in the world rankings, having been a former No.1 on the WTA tour, first achieved back in 2004. She had her worst season of the last 10 years in 2007, dropping out of the top 10 and failing to survive past the 4th round in any of the four Grand Slams that season.

'Mauresmo has a 495-199 winning record on the WTA tour and I feel it would be a good time to retire from playing once she has reached 500'

This must be difficult for a player who is so used to playing in the latter stages of these events, having won Wimbledon and the Australian Open back in 2006. Before these Grand Slam victories Mauresmo had under-achieved, and most people would say the French star was even lucky to win in Melbourne due to the retirement of both her opponents in the semis and final. She has only won 24 career titles, which is some way behind fellow No.1 players of recent times.

In 2008 Mauresmo, although reaching three singles quarter-finals, has failed to go any further in what can only be described as 'unimportant' tournments compared to what she is used to winning.

She has been lucky to even win the nine matches that she has this season, often more through the poor play of her opponents rather than her own quality. Defeats against players she would normally trounce, such as Casey Dellacqua (ranked 78) and Tamarine Tanasugarn of Thailand (101) have raised the question why Mauresmo hasn't hung up her tennis racket for good and left the sport while she is still at the top. Maybe deep down she feels this slump in form is just a temporary thing and she still has good tennis to play – I doubt it.

Mauresmo has a 495-199 winning record on the WTA tour and I feel it would be a good time to retire from playing once she has reached 500 career victories and maybe say 'au revoir' at her home tournament in Roland Garros at the French Open in a few months time.

Having earned more than $13,000,000 in prize money Mauresmo is one of the richest women in the game, but I feel only a career in TV and media is the way forward for the French player.

One glimmer of hope for Mauresmo, if she continues to fight on, is the comeback of Lindsay Davenport. Davenport, now in her 30s, came back to the tour late last year after giving birth to her first child. She’s had good success, winning three small tournaments so far in her comeback.

The difference is that Davenport is enjoying herself and has no pressure on her shoulders. She's having fun, something Mauresmo has struggled with throughout her career. The likes of Tatiana Golovin, Marion Bartoli and Alize Cornet are the new faces of French Tennis.

Comments (5)

by Big V on March 11, 2008

It'd be sad if Amelie left the sport for good. It's probably just not like her to leave the sport while she's still a top ranked player. She would have thought it was selfish. Maybe it's the chance to prove herself once more or the passion that still burns in her. She and Nadia Petrova have had very bad performances recently, but still, they continue to play and improve despite fitness problems that are difficult to address, let alone remedy. Maybe Lindsay Davenport's resurgence inspires them to continue. I mean... c'mon! Lindsay's 31 and she's still good enough to thrash those no-name top 100 players with ease. She may not be able to compete against the top dogs such as Sharapova, Henin, Ivanovic and co., but she's still more than good enough to stay on the tour. Amelie can do the same.

by André Dummasch on March 11, 2008

I never was a fan of her game, i never was a fan of her. Nevertheless she has good successes the last years. but i think her time is over. she hasn't got the power to fight back to the top. and it's better to stop now, then to have an end like sanchez or martinez which played the last couple of years of their career under a bell. maybe amelie hopes of a comeback like pierce in 2005 or davenport in 2008. but it's improbably that she can do it like those girls. say goodbye amelie, as far as soon.

by Pauline Mead on March 11, 2008

Amelie is wonderful to watch when on top of her game, a superb athlete, and very gracious, I hope to see her play on and achieve much more, I believe she is capable of winning more slams, but she needs to get other tournament wins under her belt first, she has to get back to dominating her game again, I believe she can do it.

by Han F on March 11, 2008

There is no doubt in my mind she will be able to come back to her top form. She is such a wonderful athlete, and has a beautiful all-round game. It would be a shame to see her go, because of one or two losses, and I really hope she can make it.

by Patrick on April 26, 2008

Amelie is a beautiful player and such a gritty player. It would be a shame if she retired. She still has more in her to play. I think she should take the rest of the year off and come back in 2009.