Au Revoir: Caroline Garcia Plays Last Singles Match at Roland Garros

The emotions keep flowing at Roland Garros as yet another tennis great bids farewell to the tournament's red clay.

Former World No. 4 Caroline Garcia fell 6-4, 6-4 to American Bernarda Pera on Court Suzanne-Lenglen in her final singles match at Roland Garros.

Days before the tournament, Garcia announced her retirement from the WTA tour later this year, though she will still compete in a few tournaments following Roland Garros.

"I'm deeply grateful for this journey - for everything tennis had given me, and for how much it's helped me become a strong, passionate, hardworking woman," Garcia said in an Instagram post. "But now it's time for something else. My body and personal goals need it."

Garcia entered what would be her final match as a singles player at Roland Garros with tears in her eyes. This marked her 14th consecutive main draw at the tournament and her first match on clay all season. She entered the draw ranked No. 144, recording just three wins in nine matches this season.

Garcia played a clinical match, but Pera took advantage of key moments, breaking Garcia's serve at 4-4 in the first set and her first two service games in the second set.

Garcia had a little fight in her when she broke back at 0-3, but it wasn't enough as Pera held her serve for the rest of the set.

The French national received a standing ovation at the conclusion of the match, emotion getting the best of her as she sat on her bench after embracing Pera at the net. Fellow compatriots Amelie Mauresmo and Alizé Cornet came to support Garcia as she addressed the crowd.

"I have always tried to give my best, and I always dreamed of winning the singles tournament," Garcia told the crowd in French, fighting back tears.

"Unfortunately, I never managed it. But all these moments, the good times and the more difficult times, all these moments I shared with you, the French public, will remain etched in my memory forever."

Over the course of her 14-year career, Garcia claimed 11 singles titles, including the 2022 WTA Finals and WTA 1000 Cincinnati Open, and seven doubles titles, two of which were Grand Slam titles at Roland Garros with Kristina Mladenovic in 2016 and 2022.

She achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 4 in September 2018 and World No. 2 in doubles.

Her deepest singles run at Roland Garros came in 2017 when she reached the quarterfinals after defeating Cornet in straight sets, while her career-best Grand Slam singles result was a semifinal appearance at the 2022 US Open, where she fell to eventual finalist Ons Jabeur.

"This first part of my life, my first chapter, with tennis, enabled me to become the person I am today," Garcia said in her post-match speech. "It shaped my character."

Garcia will be back in action today for her first-round doubles match with fellow French player Diane Parry on Court 3.

The 2025 French Open runs from May 25 - June 8. Stay locked into Sports Illustrated's Serve On SI for all of your tennis news from the court and beyond.

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