Gilles Simon announced prior to the ongoing Paris Masters that the ATP 1000 event will be his last tour-level tournament.
The 37-year-old brought the curtains down on a professional career that spanned a couple of decades. After receiving a wildcard to play at the Paris Masters, Simon defeated the 3-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray in the first round. This was after the former dropped the first set.
Following this win, Simon took on the ninth seed Taylor Fritz in the round of 32. The experienced Frenchman pulled off another upset win against the American in a closely contested three-set affair.
In the round of 16, Simon locked horns with an in-form Felix Auger-Aliassime, who came into the tournament on the back of winning three consecutive titles. The 22-year-old got the better of Simon in straight sets 6-1, 6-3 in front of an emotional crowd.
In the post-match interview, Simon said that he was glad to have Felix Auger-Aliassime as his opponent in his final tour-level match.
“Felix, you know, when you see the draw, you wonder who you will play, who you will finish against, and then you start to think about it if it’s going to be a French player. If it’s Andy [Murray], who has already destroyed me 16 times, and if he will do it for the 17th time. It could have been him and it could have been Taylor [Fritz]. But it’s you [Felix] and I’m happy that it’s against you and I wish you all the best for the future, thank you.”
Let’s take a look at how the tennis world on Twitter reacted following Gilles Simon’s defeat in his last match on the tour.
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