Jo-Wilfried Tsonga French Tennis Player From Le Mans

Early life

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was born on 17 April 1985 in Le Mans, France. He is 188 cm tall, and he built his reputation as a tall, aggressive baseline player with a heavy serve. As a teenager he rose quickly through the junior ranks. In 2003 he won the boys' singles title at the US Open, beating Marcos Baghdatis in the final, and in October of that year he reached a junior ranking of world number two. He also reached the semifinals of the other three junior Grand Slam events that season, and had made the last four at the Australian Open junior event in 2002.

He turned professional in 2004. His first main-draw appearance on the ATP Tour came at the China Open that September, where he came through qualifying and then beat the top seed, the former world number one Carlos Moya, in the first round. Several seasons of limited play followed, and he started 2007 ranked 212th in the world.

Career

The 2007 season changed his standing. He won four Challenger titles, took his first ATP doubles title in Lyon with Sebastien Grosjean, and finished the year at number 43, having climbed more than 160 places.

At the 2008 Australian Open he reached the final as an unseeded player. On the way he beat Andy Murray and then second seed Rafael Nadal in straight sets, before losing the final to Novak Djokovic in four sets. That autumn he won his first ATP title in Bangkok and then the Paris Masters, beating David Nalbandian in the final. In 2009 he added titles in Johannesburg, Marseille and Tokyo, and with Julien Benneteau he won the Shanghai Masters doubles title.

His later seasons brought a series of deep runs at the biggest events. He reached the Australian Open semifinals in 2010 and the Wimbledon semifinals in 2011 and 2012. At Wimbledon in 2011 he beat Roger Federer in the quarterfinals after trailing by two sets, the first time Federer had lost a Grand Slam match from that lead. Later in 2011 he reached the finals of the Paris Masters and of the ATP Finals, losing both to Federer. In 2012 he reached a career-high ranking of world number five, and at the London Olympics he and Michael Llodra took the silver medal in men's doubles, losing the final to Bob and Mike Bryan. In 2013 he reached the French Open semifinals, beating Federer in straight sets in the quarterfinals along the way.

His second Masters 1000 title came at the 2014 Canadian Open in Toronto, where he defeated Djokovic, Murray and Federer in successive rounds. Later that year he reached the 2015 Shanghai Masters final and the French Open semifinals in 2015. In 2017 he won four singles titles, in Rotterdam, Marseille, Lyon and Antwerp, the Lyon title being his first on clay. He was part of the France team that won the Davis Cup in 2017 after the team had finished as runner-up in 2014.

After a quieter few years, he returned to the winner's circle in 2019 at Montpellier and Metz. In total he won 18 singles titles on the ATP Tour. He announced in April 2022 that he would retire at the French Open, and his final match was a first-round loss to Casper Ruud on 24 May 2022.

Recognition

Tsonga was named the ATP's Newcomer of the Year for 2007 and its Most Improved Player for 2008. In 2012 he was made a Knight of the National Order of Merit, a French state honour. He is one of only three players, with Tomas Berdych and Stan Wawrinka, to have beaten each member of the so-called Big Four at a Grand Slam event. He is also a member of the Tennis Club de Paris.

Personal life

Tsonga is known by the nickname Ali, which he received because of a facial resemblance to the boxer Muhammad Ali. He married Noura El Shwekh in July 2018.