_(51376816939).jpg) Tsonga at the2021 French Open | |||||||||||||||
| Country (sports) |  France | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residence | Gingins, Switzerland | ||||||||||||||
| Born | (1985-04-17)17 April 1985 (age 40) Le Mans, France | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||
| Turned pro | 2004 | ||||||||||||||
| Retired | 2022 | ||||||||||||||
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) | ||||||||||||||
| Coach | Éric Winogradsky (2004–2011) Roger Rasheed (2012–2013) Nicolas Escudé (2013–2015) Thierry Ascione (2013–2022) Sergi Bruguera (2019–2022) | ||||||||||||||
| Prize money | US$22,458,018[1] | ||||||||||||||
| Singles | |||||||||||||||
| Career record | 467–238 (66.2%)[a] | ||||||||||||||
| Career titles | 18 | ||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | No. 5 (27 February 2012) | ||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam singles results | |||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | F (2008) | ||||||||||||||
| French Open | SF (2013,2015) | ||||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | SF (2011,2012) | ||||||||||||||
| US Open | QF (2011,2015,2016) | ||||||||||||||
| Other tournaments | |||||||||||||||
| Tour Finals | F (2011) | ||||||||||||||
| Olympic Games | QF (2012) | ||||||||||||||
| Doubles | |||||||||||||||
| Career record | 83–67 (55.3%) | ||||||||||||||
| Career titles | 4 | ||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | No. 33 (26 October 2009) | ||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam doubles results | |||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | 2R (2008) | ||||||||||||||
| French Open | 2R (2021) | ||||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | Q1 (2007) | ||||||||||||||
| Team competitions | |||||||||||||||
| Davis Cup | W (2017) | ||||||||||||||
| Hopman Cup | W (2014) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (French pronunciation:[ʒowilfʁidtsɔŋɡa];[2] born 17 April 1985) is a French former professionaltennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by theAssociation of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on theATP Tour, including twoMasters 1000 titles.
In his early career, Tsonga won the2003 US Open junior singles title and was theATP Newcomer of the Year for2007. He rose to fame by reaching the2008 Australian Open final as an unseeded player, defeating four seeded players (including world No. 2Rafael Nadal) en route. He followed by winning his first Masters title at the2008 Paris Masters, and reached the final of the2011 ATP Finals. At the2012 Summer Olympics, Tsonga won the silver medal in men's doubles partneringMichaël Llodra. He claimed his second Masters title at the2014 Canadian Open, defeating four top-ten players en route. Tsonga also reached the final of the2011 Paris Masters and the2015 Shanghai Masters. In doubles, he won the2009 Shanghai Masters doubles title partneringJulien Benneteau. In2017, Tsonga helpedFrance to theDavis Cup crown, after being runner-up in 2014. He retired from the sport at the2022 French Open. Tsonga is one of only three players (the others beingTomáš Berdych andStan Wawrinka) to have major wins against each of theBig Four. He is a member of theTennis Club de Paris.
Tsonga was born on 17 April 1985 in Le Mans to aCongolese father, Didier Tsonga, ahandball player, and a French mother, Évelyne Tsonga. His father moved to France during the 1970s to fulfill his dreams of becoming a handball professional player. In France he eventually met Évelyne and they married. Tsonga is nicknamed Ali because of his facial resemblance to boxing legendMuhammad Ali.[3]
His cousin is footballerMaël Lépicier who plays forCongo.[4]
Tsonga had a career-high ITF junior singles ranking of world No. 2, attained on 13 October 2003. He won the2003 US Open boys' singles title. He reached four other singles semifinals of junior Grand Slam events.Marcos Baghdatis was a major rival of Tsonga on the junior tour.
Tsonga started dating Noura El Shwekh in late 2014[5] Their first child, a boy, was born on 17 March 2017.[6] Tsonga and El Shwekh married on 21 July 2018.[7][8]
Tsonga played his first junior match in July 2000 at the age of 15 at a grade 2 tournament in the Netherlands. He had a very successful junior career; he won theUS Open boys' singles title in2003 by defeatingMarcos Baghdatis in the final and he was a losing boys' singles semifinalist in the other threeGrand Slam events in the same year. Tsonga reached his career-high boys' singles ranking of world no. 2 on 13 October 2003.[9]
Junior Grand Slam results – Singles:
Australian Open: SF (2002,2003)
French Open: SF (2003)
Wimbledon: SF (2003)
US Open:W (2003)
Tsonga turned pro in 2004. He won three singles qualifying matches at the2004 China Open held in September of that year to reach the singles main draw of an ATP Tour tournament for the first time in his career; in the main draw, he upset former French Open singles champion, former No. 1 and the top seedCarlos Moyá in the first round, before losing toLee Hyung-taik in the second round.[10][11]
Tsonga suffered a string of injuries beginning late in 2004, with a herniated disc that caused him to be out of action until March 2005. Then came two right shoulder injuries later in 2005, back and abdominal ailments from October 2005 to February 2006, and the recurrence of an abdominal injury at the end of 2006. In all, he played (only the singles events of) just eight ATP Tour tournaments from August 2004 to November 2006.[12]
In January 2007, then ranked No. 212 in the world, Tsonga received a wild card entry into the2007 Australian Open, where in only his second seniorGrand Slam tournament match, he met sixth seedAndy Roddick for the second time in his career. What followed was the longest tiebreak in Australian Open history in the first set, which he went on to win (20–18). Tsonga forced a tiebreak in the second set, as well. However, he went on to lose the match in four sets. He was just 21 at the time.
In 2007, Tsonga won fourChallenger titles inTallahassee, Mexico City,Lanzarote, andSurbiton. Tsonga qualified for the 2007Queen's Club Championships, while at the same time playing in the Surbiton Challenger, which he won. Between the two events, he won five matches during the course of two days. In the second round of the Queen's main draw, he met the sixth seed and defending champion, former No. 1Lleyton Hewitt, ranked No. 16 in theATP rankings. Tsonga won the match after two tiebreaks to seal his most prominent victory since his triumph in ATP debut over former No. 1Carlos Moyá, then ranked No. 6 in the world, at Beijing in 2004. Tsonga went on to lose to promising Croatian youngsterMarin Čilić in the following round.
AtWimbledon 2007, where Tsonga was again awarded a wildcard entry, he reached the fourth round (his first time past round one of a Grand Slam), defeating countrymanJulien Benneteau,Nicolás Lapentti, andFeliciano López. His run was halted by his countryman and friend, 12th seedRichard Gasquet, in straight sets. He did not beat a seeded player in his progress to the fourth round (Andy Murray, the potential seed he would have faced, had dropped out). The win brought his ranking up from No. 110 to No. 74, his first time inside the top 75.
Then, at the2007 US Open, Tsonga defeatedÓscar Hernández before beatingTim Henman in what proved to be Henman's last Major.[13][14][15] He then lost toRafael Nadal in three sets.[16]
The2007 Grand Prix de Tennis de Lyon tournament started strongly for Tsonga. Tsonga beatVince Spadea,[17][18]Richard Gasquet,[19] andOlivier Rochus, before losing to compatriotSébastien Grosjean. He partnered Grosjean, however, in men's doubles, where the team was awarded a wildcard. They beat top seedsJulien Benneteau andMichaël Llodra,Fabrice Santoro andGilles Simon, and then third seedsArnaud Clément andNicolas Mahut in the semifinals. Tsonga won his first doubles title, and Grosjean won his first doubles title in three years by defeatingŁukasz Kubot andLovro Zovko in straight sets.
By the end of the year, Tsonga saw his ranking rise over 150 ranking spots into the top 50. Tsonga began 2007 ranked No. 212, and in early July was in the top 100 at No. 74. In October, Tsonga climbed into the top 50 for the first time in his career, finishing the year ranked No. 43. Tsonga's year-end 169 ranking spots climb was the biggest climb of any player ranked in the top 75.
Starting his2008 season at the2008 Next Generation Adelaide International, Tsonga defeatedVictor Hănescu,Ernests Gulbis andLleyton Hewitt (the top seed). However, he fell in the semifinals toJarkko Nieminen. In doubles, Tsonga andSébastien Grosjean lost toFlorian Mayer andChris Haggard in the first round.
Tsonga played doubles in the SydneyMedibank International withRichard Gasquet. They scored a major upset in the final over world No. 1 teamBob and Mike Bryan in a super-tiebreak.
Tsonga began his2008 Australian Open campaign with a tough first-round match against ninth seedAndy Murray and pulled off a four-set victory.[20] Tsonga then defeatedSam Warburg,Guillermo García López,Richard Gasquet andMikhail Youzhny to reach the semifinals. In the semifinals, Tsonga shocked second seedRafael Nadal in straight sets. He did not face a break point on his serve until the third set, while breaking the Spaniard five times in the match.[21] The victory earned him a spot in his firstGrand Slam final, where he was beaten by No. 3Novak Djokovic in four sets.[22] Tsonga was the only player in the tournament to take a set from Djokovic. Following the tournament, he saw his ranking climb to a career-high of No. 18.
Tsonga then competed at theIndian Wells Masters, where he reached the fourth round, before losing to defending championRafael Nadal in three sets. Following the tournament, Tsonga saw his ATP ranking climb again to a new career high of No. 12.
Tsonga pulled out of the French Open because of a knee problem that lasted for several months.[23] This knee injury made him pull out of the quarterfinals of the Davis Cup, France vs. the United States. He underwent successful knee surgery and participated in the2008 US Open. He defeatedSantiago Ventura andCarlos Moyá, before falling to No. 5Tommy Robredo in the third round.
At theThailand Open he defeatedLukáš Dlouhý,Jürgen Melzer,Gaël Monfils, andNovak Djokovic to claim his first career ATP title. At theParis Masters, Tsonga overcame Djokovic once again to earn a place in the quarterfinals. He then defeatedAndy Roddick andJames Blake. In the final, Tsonga defeatedDavid Nalbandian in a competitive three-set match to capture his first careerATP Masters Series championship. His win allowed him to secure a spot in the year-endTennis Masters Cup.[24]
In the round-robin portion of the Masters Cup, Tsonga lost toNikolay Davydenko andJuan Martín del Potro, and beatNovak Djokovic, but he did not advance to the semifinals.
Tsonga started his 2009 season in Australia at theBrisbane International tournament. He defeatedAgustín Calleri andJarkko Nieminen, but lost toRichard Gasquet in the quarterfinals in three sets. Tsonga teamed up with fellow FrenchmanMarc Gicquel to win the doubles title by defeatingFernando Verdasco andMischa Zverev in the final. The duo had beaten Travis Parrott and Filip Polášek, Simon Aspelin and Pavel Vízner, and Mario Ančić and Paul-Henri Mathieu en route to the finals.
At theMedibank International, Tsonga was forced to retire with a back injury before his quarterfinal match against Jarkko Nieminen. He had defeated Italy'sSimone Bolelli in straight sets to set up the clash with Nieminen.
AtAustralian Open Tsonga lost in the quarterfinals toFernando Verdasco in four sets. His rank went down to No. 14. He next entered theSouth African Tennis Open inJohannesburg, where he won his first title of the year, and third overall, by defeatingJérémy Chardy in the final. After his triumph in South Africa, Tsonga entered theABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament inRotterdam, where he lost to No. 1Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals in three sets.
Tsonga then entered theOpen 13 inMarseille. He defeatedAndrey Golubev,Simone Bolelli, andFeliciano López, before notching his fourth straight win overNovak Djokovic in the semifinals. In his second all-French final of the month, he defeatedMichaël Llodra to win his second tournament in three weeks.
Tsonga was then called up to play the singles matches forFrance against theCzech Republic in theirDavis Cup first-round clash. Tsonga defeatedRadek Štěpánek, but the Czech Republic had an insurmountable 3–1 lead. Tsonga gave France a consolation point by beatingJan Hernych.
At theBNP Paribas Open inIndian Wells, California, Tsonga made an early exit from the tournament, as he was defeated by the RussianIgor Andreev in the third round. AtSony Ericsson Open in Miami, he defeatedAgustín Calleri,Robert Kendrick, andGilles Simon, only to lose toNovak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. After skipping two tournaments, Tsonga made his return at theInternazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, but he lost his first singles match in the clay-court season at the hands ofRichard Gasquet. In doubles, he and partnerJulien Benneteau lost to the Polish pair ofMariusz Fyrstenberg andMarcin Matkowski in the second round.
Tsonga then entered theMadrid Masters, but lost in round two. Afterwards, he received the 2008 ATP Most Improved Player of the Year award.[25]
Tsonga then represented France atDüsseldorf, Germany in theARAG World Team Cup. He won the first tie against Sweden'sAndreas Vinciguerra, but lost in doubles. Tsonga was defeated by GermanPhilipp Kohlschreiber, but then beat AmericanRobby Ginepri. However, France lost three successive ties during the week
Tsonga then entered theFrench Open. He recorded his first-ever match win at the tournament by defeatingJulien Benneteau in the first round. He then had wins overJuan Mónaco andChristophe Rochus, before his fine run ended at the hands of fifth seedJuan Martín del Potro. Next up was theGerry Weber Open, Tsonga suffered a straight-set defeat against GermanTommy Haas in the second round. However, In doubles, Tsonga was paired with his French compatriotMarc Gicquel, but they were also defeated in round two.
Tsonga then enteredWimbledon. He survived a tough four-set againstAndrey Golubev and received a walkover fromSimone Bolelli, before losing toIvo Karlović of Croatia. At theLegg Mason Tennis Classic in Washington, D.C, Tsonga lost to the AmericanJohn Isner in the second round. Tsonga made his debut at theRogers Cup inMontreal, Quebec, Canada. He defeatedRainer Schüttler andGilles Simon. In the quarterfinals, he overcame No. 1Roger Federer, coming back from an injury timeout after winning the first set by a dive-volley, as well as being 1–5 down in the third set. In the semifinals he lost toAndy Murray in straight sets.
At theWestern & Southern Financial Group Masters inCincinnati, Tsonga made an early exit from the singles category, unexpectedly losing to No. 124Chris Guccione of Australia. In doubles, Tsonga andMichaël Llodra lost toMahesh Bhupathi andMark Knowles in the quarterfinals.
TheUS Open started well with victories overChase Buchanan,Jarkko Nieminen, andJulien Benneteau. However, Tsonga lost to 11th seed ChileanFernando González in the fourth round. Tsonga then represented France at theDavis Cup playoff round against the Netherlands. Tsonga defeatedJesse Huta Galung andThiemo de Bakker in singles and, with partnerMichaël Llodra, won in doubles overThiemo de Bakker andIgor Sijsling, wrapping up the tie 4–1.
Tsonga then entered thePTT Thailand Open, where he was the defending champion and top seed, asRafael Nadal withdrew just days before the tournament began. After two close matches, Tsonga crashed out to the young SerbianViktor Troicki in the semifinals. Tsonga also competed in the doubles category withFabrice Santoro, but they lost toMischa Zverev andGuillermo García López in the semifinals. At theJapan Open in Tokyo, Tsonga defeatedMischa Zverev,Richard Gasquet,Ernests Gulbis, andGaël Monfils to reach the final. There, he beatMikhail Youzhny in just over an hour to clinch his third title of the season and his first-ever ATP World Tour 500 title. In the doubles category, Tsonga paired with SwissStanislas Wawrinka, but they were defeated in the second round.
Next up was a trip to China and theShanghai Masters. Tsonga defeatedZeng Shao-Xuan, but lost toRobin Söderling in the third round. In doubles, paired withJulien Benneteau, he made it to the finals, where they beat sixth seededMariusz Fyrstenberg andMarcin Matkowski to win their first-ever ATP Masters 1000 doubles title. After two disappointing tournaments atLyon and theValencia Open, Tsonga entered theParis Masters, where he was the defending champion. He had wins overAlbert Montañés andGilles Simon, but lost to No. 2Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals. He ended his 2009 season staying in the top 10 for the second year in a row.
Tsonga switched his rackets to Babolat (previously using Wilson) and started his 2010 season at theAAMI Kooyong Classic, after recovering from a wrist injury. After two wins and a walkover, he lost toFernando Verdasco in the final. At the2010 Australian Open, Tsonga beatSergiy Stakhovsky,Taylor Dent,Tommy Haas, andNicolás Almagro. In the quarterfinals, he beat No. 3Novak Djokovic, in his second five-set match. Tsonga's fatigue soon took a toll on him, however, as he was badly beaten in the semifinals by No. 1Roger Federer.
Tsonga then enteredOpen 13 in Marseille, France. He had two wins, but lost againstJulien Benneteau in the semifinal. At2010 Dubai Tennis Championships, he won againstMichaël Llodra, who retired due to injury, but then struggled with form and lost toIvan Ljubičić in the second round. TheDavis Cup was next against Germany. In the singles, Tsonga helped France take an unassailable 3–0 lead, by winning the second-rubber match againstBenjamin Becker, but was forced to retire againstSimon Greul due to a recurring injury.
At the2010 BNP Paribas Open, Tsonga lost toRobin Söderling in the fourth round. He was seeded eighth at the2010 Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. He beatGuillermo García López,Philipp Kohlschreiber, andJuan Carlos Ferrero, before losing toRafael Nadal, after blowing eight break-point opportunities. Tsonga then made his debut at the2010 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. He had a win overNicolás Almagro, but was edged out in a match againstJuan Carlos Ferrero.
After nursing an injury, Tsonga entered the2010 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell. After wins overJan Hájek andNicolás Almagro, he was stunned by Dutch youngsterThiemo de Bakker in the quarterfinals. At the2010 Internazionali BNL d'Italia, but was beaten byDavid Ferrer in the quarterfinals. At the2010 Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open, he was forced to retire in the opening round against Guillermo García López.
Seeded eighth at the2010 French Open, Tsonga defeatedDaniel Brands, in five sets,Josselin Ouanna, andThiemo de Bakker. Unfortunately, in the fourth round, Tsonga had to withdraw after losing the first set againstMikhail Youzhny, due to the progressive regional back pain from the previous round. Scans showed that Tsonga had sustained a right hip injury.
At Wimbledon he was seeded tenth. He had tough wins overRobert Kendrick andAlexandr Dolgopolov, before easier victories overTobias Kamke andJulien Benneteau. However, in the quarterfinals, he eventually fell to home favoriteAndy Murray in four sets. Not long after his Wimbledon campaign, Jo suffered a heavy knee injury. It caused him to withdraw from all the US Open Series events, including theUS Open.
Tsonga made his return in October for his title defense at the2010 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships as the third seed, but rustiness was apparent, and he lost early toJarkko Nieminen. Entering the2010 Shanghai Rolex Masters 1000 as the 12th seed, Tsonga had wins overFeliciano López,Sam Querrey, andFlorian Mayer, before losing in the quarterfinals in straight sets to eventual championAndy Murray. He then entered theKremlin Cup in Moscow, but lost againstViktor Troicki in the second round. A week later, Tsonga made a semifinal appearance at theOpen Sud de France in Montpellier, but was beaten byGaël Monfils for the first time.
During the week in Montpellier, Tsonga re-aggravated his knee problem. He missed theParis Masters, as well as the FrenchDavis Cup final againstSerbia. It was a tough end to the season for Tsonga, as he finished the season outside the top 10 for the first time in three years, compiled a 31–16 win–loss record (his worst tally since 2007), and failed to reach a single final during the season.[26]
Tsonga started his ATP season with an exhibition tournament atAbu Dhabi. However, Tsonga suffered a loss toRobin Söderling, but later told the press that being out of tennis for several months last season has made him hungry and determined.
At theQatar ExxonMobil Open, Tsonga defeatedRubén Ramírez Hidalgo,Sergey Bubka, andGuillermo García López, before losing toRoger Federer in the semifinal. TheAAMI Kooyong Classic had Tsonga losing early toJürgen Melzer. Tsonga then entered the2011 Australian Open. After a thrilling win overPhilipp Petzschner and breezing pastAndreas Seppi, Tsonga lost toAlexandr Dolgopolov in five sets.
Tsonga then participated in theABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament inRotterdam, Netherlands. He defeated BulgarianGrigor Dimitrov,Michaël Llodra, andIvan Ljubičić to reach his first final since winning the Japan Open in 2009, but lost there toRobin Söderling. At theOpen 13 tennis tournament, Tsonga lost to RussianMikhail Youzhny in the quarterfinals. A day later, he declared that he had sustained another ankle injury, which again put him out of Davis Cup action against Austria. Tsonga fell in the opening round at the2011 BNP Paribas Open.
At the2011 Sony Ericsson Open, as the 15th seed, Tsonga's poor form continued. He managed to get a win overTeymuraz Gabashvili, but fell toAlexandr Dolgopolov in a match that lasted two days. Afterwards, he announced that he and his longtime coachÉric Winogradsky had decided to part ways after working together for seven years. At the2011 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, he had a win overJuan Mónaco, but was beaten byIvan Ljubičić in round two. Then came a first-round loss at the2011 Estoril Open. Tsonga then found some form at the2011 Mutua Madrid Open, beating first-time top-10 debutantNicolás Almagro, before losing toRobin Söderling in the third round. At the2011 Internazionali BNL d'Italia, he beat juniors rivalMarcos Baghdatis, but lost toRoger Federer in the second round.
Tsonga was 19th seed heading into theFrench Open. He beat bothJan Hájek andIgor Andreev in straight sets and made it to the third round, where he was defeated by 14th seedStanislas Wawrinka. At the 2011 Aegon Championships in London, Tsonga beatMichael Berrer andRafael Nadal, while moving through to the semifinals for the first time in a grass tournament. In the semifinals, he defeated British wildcardJames Ward, but he let slip a healthy lead in a loss againstAndy Murray in the final.[27] Just 24 hours later, he arrived at the2011 Aegon International in Eastbourne. In his opening round, he defeatedDenis Istomin, but he lost toRadek Štěpánek in round two.
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At the2011 Wimbledon Championships, Tsonga defeatedGo Soeda,Grigor Dimitrov,Fernando González, andDavid Ferrer. In the quarterfinals, he stunned the Centre Court crowd by coming from two sets down to defeatRoger Federer. This handed Federer his first loss in a Grand Slam after leading two sets to love, while handing Tsonga only his second win in coming back from two sets down.[28] In the semifinals, however, despite serving for the first set and saving three match points in the third-set tiebreak, he eventually lost to second seed and eventual championNovak Djokovic in four sets.
At theRogers Cup in Montreal, Tsonga defeatedFabio Fognini,Bernard Tomic,Roger Federer, andNicolás Almagro, to set up a Wimbledon semifinal rematch againstNovak Djokovic. After trailing 4–6, 0–3, Tsonga retired due to an arm problem. At the2011 Western & Southern Open, Tsonga defeatedMarin Čilić, but lost to qualifierAlex Bogomolov Jr. At theUS Open, he defeatedLu Yen-hsun,Sergey Bubka,Fernando Verdasco, andMardy Fish. He again metRoger Federer in the quarterfinals, but this time Federer swept him aside in three sets.
Tsonga teamed up withMichaël Llodra to notch an impressive victory overFernando Verdasco andFeliciano López in Davis Cup play against Spain, but then was crushed byRafael Nadal in his fourth singles rubber, as France lost the tie against Spain 1–4. Tsonga played at the2011 Open de Moselle, where he was the top-seeded player. He defeatedMathieu Rodrigues andNicolas Mahut, and in the semifinals he ended a two-match losing streak againstAlexandr Dolgopolov. In the final, Tsonga fought pastIvan Ljubičić in three sets to win the tournament; his first title in almost two years since his triumph in Tokyo.
At2011 China Open, he opened with wins overGrigor Dimitrov,Zhang Ze, andJuan Carlos Ferrero. In Tsonga's semifinal match againstTomáš Berdych Tsonga could not withstand Berdych's growing confidence in a three-set loss. Tsonga was fourth seed for the 2011Shanghai Rolex Masters. Tsonga lost his first match toKei Nishikori. Vienna was the next destination for Tsonga in the2011 Erste Bank Open. Victories overJarkko Nieminen,Xavier Malisse, andDaniel Brands set up a final againstJuan Martín del Potro. The first set was tight with del Potro taking it in a tie-break, but Tsonga prevailed in sets two and three for his second title of the season.
Just two days after Tsonga's victory in Vienna, Tsonga played his first-round match at the2011 Valencia Open 500. He lost in round two toSam Querrey. As expected, the home crowd warmed to Jo from the start of the2011 BNP Paribas Masters. Tsonga had wins overGuillermo García López,Andreas Seppi, andJohn Isner, which set up a final againstRoger Federer. Federer stormed through the first set and then won a tiebreak in the second to take the title.
As a result of Tsonga's exploits in the Paris Masters, he qualified for theBarclays ATP World Tour Finals. Tsonga fell to Federer, beatMardy Fish, and defeatedRafael Nadal to make it to the semifinals. A win overTomáš Berdych sent Tsonga to the finals of the year-end championships for the first time in his career. In the final, Tsonga fought bravely, but came up short once again againstRoger Federer. Tsonga finished the year matching his 2008 career-high ranking of No. 6.
Just before 2012 began, Tsonga participated in theAbu Dhabi exhibition tournament in late December 2011, where he lost a match againstDavid Ferrer. Tsonga then began his 2012 season at the2012 Qatar Open. Three wins set up a meeting againstRoger Federer in the semifinals. However, Federer announced an unexpected withdrawal from the tournament due to a back problem, which gave Tsonga a walkover into the final. In the final, he won againstGaël Monfils. Tsonga then played in the2012 AAMI Classic exhibition tournament and lost the two matches he played.
A week later, Tsonga had wins overDenis Istomin,Ricardo Mello, andFrederico Gil to make the round of 16 at the2012 Australian Open. However, againstKei Nishikori, Tsonga lost a close five set match. He took some time off before entering the2012 Open 13. Two routine wins placed him in the semifinals againstJuan Martín del Potro, where he lost in three sets. Next on the calendar was the2012 Dubai Tennis Championships. Tsonga defeatedMarcos Baghdatis andLukáš Rosol, but lost once again to del Potro.
The first Masters Series of the season, the2012 BNP Paribas Open saw struggles. A retirement byMichaël Llodra and a win overRadek Štěpánek preceded a loss toDavid Nalbandian, after holding a match point. At the2012 Sony Ericsson Open, three easy wins paved the way to a quarterfinal encounter withRafael Nadal. Tsonga fought hard, but Nadal battled to a three-set win.
InDavis Cup play, Tsonga beatRyan Harrison and lost toJohn Isner. France was eliminated from the event. The start of the clay-court run was next at the2012 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. The results were wins againstPhilipp Kohlschreiber andFernando Verdasco and a loss againstGilles Simon. The2012 BMW Open yielded a first-round loss toTommy Haas. The2012 Mutua Madrid Open was similar, with a second-round loss toAlexandr Dolgopolov. The2012 Internazionali BNL d'Italia followed. Two victories againstViktor Troicki andJuan Martín del Potro set up a loss to top seedNovak Djokovic in the quarterfinals.
Tsonga'sFrench Open 2012 started off in shaky fashion after dropping the first set to Russian qualifierAndrey Kuznetsov. However, he closed out the match and then had wins overCedrik-Marcel Stebe,Fabio Fognini, andStanislas Wawrinka. In the quarterfinals againstNovak Djokovic, he lost in five sets.[29] The grass-court season began with theAegon Championships. He defeated Britain'sJamie Baker, but was ousted byIvan Dodig in three extremely tight sets. He also suffered a finger injury during the match after diving in an attempt to retrieve a ball.
In the days leading up toWimbledon, it was announced that Tsonga had a severely sprained finger, but would still compete. This proved to be a good tournament for Tsonga, with wins overLleyton Hewitt,Guillermo García López,Lukáš Lacko,Mardy Fish, andPhilipp Kohlschreiber. He then facedAndy Murray for a place in the final, but despite managing to fight back to take the third set, Tsonga was ousted by the No. 4-ranked Murray.
The2012 London Summer Olympics was next up for Tsonga. His victory overMilos Raonic in the second round became the longest ever (in number of games played) at the Olympics.[30] Fatigue, surprisingly, did not appear to affect Tsonga in the third round. He eased into the quarterfinals overFeliciano López, but lost to No. 2Novak Djokovic. In the men's doubles event, Tsonga represented France alongsideMichaël Llodra. The pair won their opening match against ArgentiniansDavid Nalbandian andEduardo Schwank, and followed it with a win over India'sLeander Paes andVishnu Vardhan. They faced the Brazilian duo ofMarcelo Melo andBruno Soares in the quarterfinals, and earned a two set victory for a semifinal berth. In a marathon encounter, they won their next match against the Spaniards López andDavid Ferrer, 18–16 in the third set. In the finals, they faced the top seeded AmericansMike and Bob Bryan, but lost in straight sets, thus winning the Olympic silver medal.
AtRogers Cup he suffered a second-round loss toJérémy Chardy. He also crashed out in the second round of the2012 US Open, after a defeat by No. 52Martin Kližan. After a short break for recovery, Jo was back in France for the2012 Moselle Open. Tsonga rolled to a semifinal berth with RussianNikolay Davydenko. Tsonga had never beaten Davydenko in two previous attempts, but had a tight three-set win. The final was an easy two-set win overAndreas Seppi, Tsonga's ninth ATP career title.
At the2012 China Open, Tsonga had a win and a walkover before beatingMikhail Youzhny in the quarterfinals. An easy win overFeliciano López advanced Tsonga to his third final of the year. No. 2Novak Djokovic was his opponent. Djokovic won the match in two sets. Tsonga continued his year with the2012 Shanghai Masters. He had wins overBenoît Paire andMarcos Baghdatis, but he lost in the quarterfinals toTomáš Berdych in straight sets. The busy schedule continued inStockholm. Tsonga cruised pastGo Soeda andSergiy Stakhovsky in the opening rounds, and had Baghdatis retire against him after a close semifinal match. This set up a final against Tomáš Berdych – the second time in two weeks. Despite being a set and a break up, Tsonga lost in three sets.
At theValencia Open, Tsonga retired againstXavier Malisse. The Race To London was almost decided. Tsonga needed a quarterfinal appearance inParis to secure it for certain. Tsonga came through an extremely tight encounter withJulien Benneteau and then beatNicolás Almagro; though Tsonga fell toDavid Ferrer in the quarterfinals, his win over Almagro secured his place in theATP World Tour Finals. The Tour Finals found Tsonga with a new coach,Roger Rasheed.Novak Djokovic was his first round-robin opponent and Tsonga lost in two sets. Two more losses toTomáš Berdych andAndy Murray ended his season.
At2013 Hopman Cup he was paired withMathilde Johansson. Tsonga defeatedFernando Verdasco,John Isner andKevin Anderson. France finished bottom of their group, but despite injuring himself at Hopman Cup, Jo was declared fit for the2013 Australian Open, where he reached the quarterfinals but lost a thrilling five setter againstRoger Federer.
In Rotterdam, Tsonga made a surprising first-round exit againstIgor Sijsling. Tsonga then played in the Open 13 in Marseille. In the quarterfinals, he saved five match points to edgeBernard Tomic, and then rolled over his countrymanGilles Simon in the semifinals. In the final, Tsonga saved a match point and overcame top seedTomáš Berdych in three sets for his 10th ATP World Tour title.
At theFrench Open, Tsonga gained a decisive straight-set quarterfinal victory againstRoger Federer, making Tsonga the first French player to reach the semifinals sinceGaël Monfils in 2008, as well as only the second player afterRafael Nadal to have beaten Federer at both Wimbledon and the French Open. Tsonga was then defeated in straight sets byDavid Ferrer.
Following a run to the semifinals at Queen's, where Tsonga lost to the eventual champion,Andy Murray, Tsonga then competed at Wimbledon, where he was a two-time semifinalist. He retired in the second round againstErnests Gulbis. He missed the entire North American swing, including theUS Open for the second time in four years, due to the injury.[31]
Tsonga then made a comeback atMetz, reaching the final but losing to compatriotGilles Simon.[32] At the2013 BNP Paribas Masters, Tsonga lost his first match toKei Nishikori, thus ruling him out of contention for theATP World Tour Finals and capping off a disappointing season for Tsonga.[33]
Tsonga started his season winning theHopman Cup with compatriotAlizé Cornet.[34]In the fourth round of the2014 Australian Open, he lost to longtime friend and rivalRoger Federer in straight sets, despite not dropping a set in the first three rounds. Tsonga's next tournament was the Rotterdam Open. He reached the second round before falling toMarin Čilić in two tight sets. Tsonga reached the final of2014 Open 13 losing toErnest Gulbis. At the2014 Dubai Tennis Championships, he was defeated byTomáš Berdych. At the2014 Indian Wells Masters, he suffered a first round exit againstJulien Benneteau. He was defeated byAndy Murray in the fourth round of the2014 Sony Open Tennis.
Tsonga reach in the quarterfinals of the2014 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters but was defeated byRoger Federer. He was defeated bySantiago Giraldo in the second round of the2014 Mutua Madrid Open in straight sets. He was defeated byMilos Raonic for the first time in three meetings at the Rome Masters third round. In French Open, he made to the fourth round, losing toNovak Djokovic in straight sets.
Tsonga began his grass court season by reaching the 3rd round of the2014 Aegon Championships. He was stunned byMarinko Matosevic in straight sets. He then advanced to the fourth round of Wimbledon after a tricky first and second round againstJürgen Melzer andSam Querrey, both taking him to 5 sets. He fell to two-time champion and longstanding rival Novak Djokovic in straight sets.
Tsonga showed excellent form inToronto, winning his second Masters title by defeatingRoger Federer in straight sets. Tsonga won the crown capturing four wins over top-10 players, a first at a Masters-1000 event in twelve years. Impressively, Tsonga defeated three of theBig Four in a single tournament, capturing victories overNovak Djokovic in the third round,Andy Murray in the quarterfinals, and Federer in the final. His semi-final win was against Wimbledon semi-finalistGrigor Dimitrov. He was beaten byAndy Murray in the fourth round of2014 US Open in straight sets.After that, Tsonga was instrumental in driving the French Davis Cup team into the finals of the2014 Davis Cup by winning both his singles and doubles matches. At theMoselle Open at Metz, he won in straight sets againstGilles Müller but was defeated byDavid Goffin in the quarterfinals.
After a quiet, injury-hit start to the season in which Tsonga did not play at the Australian Open, he began his 2015 campaign atMiami, where he beatTim Smyczek but lost to Gaël Monfils in the second round. He reached the third round at the next two Masters 1000 events, theMonte-Carlo Rolex Masters and theMutua Madrid Open, losing out to Marin Čilić and Tomáš Berdych respectively.
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Tsonga reached his second French Open semifinal and sixth overall at Grand Slam tournaments, with wins over fourth seedTomáš Berdych and fifth seedKei Nishikori in the fourth round and quarterfinals respectively. In the semifinals, he was defeated by eighth seed and eventual championStan Wawrinka, in four close sets.
Tsonga played at the2015 Wimbledon Championships and won the first two rounds before losing out to Ivo Karlović in the round of 32 in four sets. He then played for France at the Davis Cup tie against Great Britain; he lost his match against Andy Murray and France went on to lose the rubber 3–1. Tsonga lost to Murray again in the quarterfinals of the2015 Rogers Cup, having previously beatenBernard Tomic,Roberto Bautista Agut, andBorna Ćorić.
Seeded 19th at the2015 US Open, Tsonga beatJarkko Nieminen,Marcel Granollers,Sergiy Stakhovsky, andBenoît Paire to reach his second US Open quarterfinal without dropping a single service game. He then lost to the defending championMarin Čilić in a tightly contested five-set match. Tsonga came back after losing the first two sets and saved three match points in the fourth to force a decider.
Tsonga won his twelfth singles title and third at theMoselle Open in Metz, France with a victory over compatriotGilles Simon in a hard-fought three-set final match. Tsonga entered the2015 Shanghai Rolex Masters ranked No. 15, and reached the final beatingKevin Anderson andRafael Nadal in the quarterfinals and semifinals respectively. He lost the final toNovak Djokovic, but despite the loss, re-entered the world's top 10.
Tsonga began the 2016 season at theAuckland tournament. He beatPhilipp Kohlschreiber in two sets, followed by a tight two-set victory againstFabio Fognini. In the semifinals, he lost in three sets againstRoberto Bautista Agut after leading much of the match and missing a match point. He began theAustralian Open by winning in four sets againstMarcos Baghdatis, then beat the young AustralianOmar Jasika in three sets before overcoming compatriotPierre-Hugues Herbert, also in three sets. In the fourth round, he was defeated in three sets by seventh seed,Kei Nishikori.
Tsonga then played in the2016 Argentina Open. Tsonga was beaten in the quarterfinals in straight sets byNicolás Almagro. Following the Argentina Open, he played in theRio Open, where he was beaten in the first round by No. 338Thiago Monteiro. Tsonga represented France in the2016 Davis Cup World Group First round where France beat Canada 5–0 and Tsonga beatFrank Dancevic (who retired during the match), and won the doubles alongsideRichard Gasquet in straight sets. At theIndian Wells Masters he beatVincent Millot,Sam Querrey andDominic Thiem to reach the quarters, where he was beaten by No. 1Novak Djokovic. In theMiami Masters, Tsonga was beaten in the third round byRoberto Bautista Agut.
At theMonte Carlo Masters, Tsonga made it to the semifinals stage, where he was beaten in straight sets byGaël Monfils. In that quarterfinals, he beat third seedRoger Federer. This was his first top-10 win of the season. It was also the sixth time that he has beaten Federer in 17 matches. Tsonga was scheduled to play in theEstoril Open, but he withdrew with a knee injury. He played in the2016 Madrid Open, where he was beaten in straight sets by CanadianMilos Raonic. He withdrew from theItalian Open with a muscle strain.
Tsonga, the sixth seed, retired with anadductor muscle injury from hisFrench Open third-round match against Latvia'sErnests Gulbis when he was leading 5–2 in the first set.[35] This injury also forced Tsonga to pull out of the2016 Aegon Championships. Tsonga took part inWimbledon, where he lost in the quarterfinals to the second seedAndy Murray in five sets, after holding three set points in the first set and having a break point at the start of the final set.[36]
After helping France to a Davis Cup win against the Czech Republic, Tsonga crashed out in the second round of theRio Olympics. This was followed by a surprise round of 16 loss toSteve Johnson inCincinnati. TheUS Open saw a turn in form for Tsonga, reaching the quarterfinals, following wins againstGuido Andreozzi,James Duckworth,Kevin Anderson andJack Sock. Tsonga eventually succumbed to injury and fatigue againstDjokovic, having lost the first two sets comfortably. AtShanghai, he lost in two tight sets in the quarterfinals toBautista Agut, then he reached the final inVienna, falling short against No. 2Andy Murray, and finally had a quarterfinal loss toMilos Raonic at theParis Masters. Tsonga ended the season ranked No. 12.
At theAustralian Open, Tsonga defeated No. 23 seedJack Sock and unseededDan Evans in the third and fourth rounds respectively, both in four sets. He then fell to No. 4-seededStan Wawrinka in the quarterfinals in straight sets, marking Tsonga's best result at the tournament since his 2013 quarterfinal run.[37]
In February, Tsonga won theRotterdam singles title, beatingDavid Goffin in the final in three sets to earn his first ATP World Tour singles title since the2015 Moselle Open inMetz in September 2015. Seven days later, Tsonga won his 14th career (and his second of the year) ATP World Tour singles title by defeatingLucas Pouille in the singles final of theOpen 13 to become theOpen 13 singles champion for a record third time.
Struggles with injury and the birth of Tsonga's first child had a significant impact on Tsonga's activity in the ensuing months. A first round loss toFabio Fognini inIndian Wells, withdrawal from theMiami Masters, a second round loss inMonte Carlo to compatriotAdrian Mannarino, a second round withdrawal inMadrid and withdrawal from theRome Masters were huge setbacks after an exciting start to the year.
However, the end of May saw a return to winning ways for Tsonga as he cruised to a third ATP World Tour singles title of the season inLyon. Wins overCarlos Berlocq,Karen Khachanov andNikoloz Basilashvili set up a final against perennial foeTomáš Berdych. A straight sets win saw Tsonga lift his first career ATP World Tour singles title on clay, as he improved to a 15–11 record in ATP World Tour finals. After struggling to string wins over the summer and the early autumn, Tsonga returned to the winner's circle in October, defeatingDiego Schwartzman in straight sets to capture his fourth ATP World Tour singles title of the year at theEuropean Open inAntwerp. In November, Tsonga along withLucas Pouille,Pierre-Hugues Herbert andRichard Gasquet helped France to capture their 10thDavis Cup and first in 16 years. Tsonga won his first singles match againstSteve Darcis but lost his second singles match againstDavid Goffin in theDavis Cup final againstBelgium; France won the tie with a score of 3–2.
Tsonga played his first tournament of the year at theAustralian Open, where he defeatedKevin King in straight sets andDenis Shapovalov (after being down 2–5 in the fifth set). In the third round, hefacedNick Kyrgios, who before the match referred to Tsonga as his 'idol'; Tsonga lost the match in four sets.
Tsonga was called up to play for France in the2018 Davis Cup World Group first-round tie againstthe Netherlands, but he withdrew one day before the start of the first singles match because of a knee injury.[38] At theOpen Sud de France, Tsonga held two match points when he was leading 6–1, 5–3 againstLucas Pouille in the semifinals before Tsonga was forced to retire from the match because of a left hamstring injury with the score at 6–1, 5–5.[39]
The Open Sud de France was Tsonga's second and last ATP World Tour tournament of the first four months of 2018. On 19 March, hisATP singles rankings fell to world no. 38, his lowest since he was ranked world no. 38 on 14 January 2008.[40] Tsonga pulled out of five ATP World Tour tournaments that were to be held in February, March and April (Rotterdam, Marseille, Indian Wells, Miami and Monte-Carlo) due to injuries. He underwent left knee surgery on 3 April.[41][42] Tsonga withdrew from the Masters 1000 tournaments inMadrid andRome, theLyon Open and theFrench Open because he had not recovered from his left knee surgery.[43][44] On 28 May Tsonga was ranked outside the top 50 of the ATP singles rankings for the first time since 22 October 2007 when he was 22 years old. This was still due to his undergoing surgery earlier in the year on 3 April to repair a tornmeniscus in his left knee that resulted in his not playing any tournaments for the next eight weeks. After missing three consecutive grand slam tournaments (French Open, Wimbledon and US Open) for the first time in his career, Tsonga finally made his return to competitive tennis at theATP Tour 250 tournament inMetz held in September, where he lost his main draw first round match toPeter Gojowczyk.[45] Tsonga won one and lost three singles matches in his next three events inAntwerp,Vienna andParis. After the Paris Masters, he played just one more match, in the2018 Davis Cup World Group final against Croatia; he lost the second singles rubber againstMarin Čilić.
Tsonga began the season with a semifinal appearance at theBrisbane Open where he lost toDaniil Medvedev. At theAustralian Open, he lost to world number 1Novak Djokovic in the second round in straight sets.
At theOpen Sud de France, Tsonga won his first title since 2017 when he entered the tournament as a wildcard and defeatedPierre-Hugues Herbert in the final. He followed this up the next week with a quarterfinal appearance at theRotterdam Open losing toDaniil Medvedev. The following week, he received a wildcard for theOpen 13, where he fell again against a Russian youngster. This time it was against 21-year-oldAndrey Rublev.
A month later, having skipped Indian Wells, Tsonga entered the qualifying round of theMiami Open, where he beatLukas Rosol before losing in straight sets toPablo Cuevas.[46]
Tsonga started his clay season inMarrakech, playing theGrand Prix Hassan II. He beatCedrik-Marcel Stebe,Kyle Edmund andLorenzo Sonego without dropping a set before losing toBenoit Paire in 3 sets in the semifinals.[47] He was then awarded a wildcard entry to theMonte-Carlo Masters where he lost the 1st set and retired in the 2nd of his 1st round match againstTaylor Fritz.[48]
Tsonga then returned to theATP Challenger Tour for the first time since winning theSurbiton Trophy in June 2007.[49] He entered the 48-player draw of theBordeaux Open and defeatedViktor Troicki andHugo Nys before losing in the quarterfinals against Filip Horansky.[50] After this performance, he returned to the top 100 for the 1st time since the previous October.[51]
Next, Tsonga entered theATP Masters 1000tournament in Rome losing in the 1st round to Fabio Fognini in straight sets.[52] In the following week, he entered theATP 250Lyon Open where he reached the quarterfinals by beatingDušan Lajović andSteven Diez in a match which took just short of 3 hours. He ultimately lost toNikoloz Basilashvili in a double 6–4 match.[53] He returned to theFrench Open with a 1st round win in 4 sets againstPeter Gojowczyk. Since Tsonga wasn't seeded due to his ranking of 82nd in the world, he drew 7th seed JapaneseKei Nishikori in the 2nd round and, although the Frenchman won the 1st set, he fell short in the following 3 and exited the tournament.[54]
Tsonga began his grass-court season the week following the French Open inStuttgart, where he comfortably beatMischa Zverev in the first round before losing toMilos Raonic in the 2nd round in a tightly contested 3-setter with two tiebreaks.[55] He then played theATP 500Halle Open, where he beatBenoît Paire in two tight sets, before facing his rival and at that time 9-time champion of the tournamentRoger Federer in the 2nd round. Despite the heavy favoritism of the Swiss, Tsonga had a great performance, forcing a tiebreak, in the 1st set, that he lost by 7–5, winning the 2nd set 6–4 and only succumbing by 7–5 in the 3rd. Federer went on to win his record 10th title in Halle.[56] Tsonga made the third round ofWimbledon, after straight-set wins overBernard Tomic andRičardas Berankis, and lost in straight sets to world number 2Rafael Nadal.[57]
Tsonga defeated world number 8Karen Khachanov in the second round of theWashington Open to register his first win over a top-10 player in almost two years. He lost in the next round toKyle Edmund in straight sets.
In September, Tsonga won his second title of the year at theMoselle Open defeatingAljaž Bedene in the final. Tsonga's last individual event of the year was theParis Masters in October. As a wildcard, he made it to the quarterfinals defeating world number 9Matteo Berrettini along the way. He playedRafael Nadal and lost in straight sets.
At the end of 2019, Tsonga's ranking had jumped from 239 at the beginning of the year to 29 at the end.
Tsonga played only two matches in 2020. The first one came at theQatar Open where he went in as the 3rd seed and lost toMiomir Kecmanović in the first round. The second one came at theAustralian Open where he went in as the 28th seed and lost toAlexei Popyrin in the first round.
After theCOVID-19 pandemic had shut down tennis in March, Tsonga decided to remain inactive for the rest of 2020, even when tennis came back in August.
Tsonga returned to the tour at theOpen Sud de France where he lost in the first round toSebastian Korda in straight sets. He recorded his first win of the year at theOpen 13 where he defeatedFeliciano López in straight sets but lost in the next round to 4th seedUgo Humbert in straight sets.
At theDubai Open, Tsonga sustained an arm injury in his first round match againstMalek Jaziri and retired after just six games. The injury would affect his results for the rest of the year.
Tsonga played his last match of the year atWimbledon where he lost in the first round in five sets againstMikael Ymer. He was unable to return to action during the season due to injury.
Throughout 2021, Tsonga compiled a win–loss record of 1–8.
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Tsonga returned to the tour in February at theOpen Sud de France using his protected ranking and won in the first round againstKacper Żuk in straight sets[58] before losing toFilip Krajinović in the next round.[59] He also advanced to the second round in thedoubles tournament with partnerFabrice Martin by defeatingLucas Pouille andAlbano Olivetti in the first round[60] before succumbing in the following round toJonathan Erlich andÉdouard Roger-Vasselin.
On 6 April 2022, Tsonga announced that he would retire at the2022 French Open.[61] He played his last match on 24 May againstCasper Ruud in the first round, in which he lost in four sets.[62][63][64][65]
Tsonga's most famous rivalry is perhaps againstNovak Djokovic.[66] They have met 23 times with Djokovic leading 17–6, including 7–1 in the majors.[67] Their first meeting was in the final of the2008 Australian; Djokovic and Tsonga had defeated the top two players,Roger Federer[68] andRafael Nadal[69] in their respective semifinals in straight sets. Djokovic won the final in four sets to claim his first major title.[70] Tsonga then won their next four meetings, before Djokovic stopped the streak at Miami in 2009.
Their next meeting at a Grand Slam was again at theAustralian Open, in the 2010 quarterfinals, exactly two years to the day since Djokovic defeated him to win his first Grand Slam singles title. However, this time it was Tsonga who prevailed, winning in five sets after Djokovic fell ill during the match.[71] It was not until another year and a half until they met again, with the stakes even higher, in the semifinals atWimbledon in 2011, with the winner advancing to his first Wimbledon final. It was their first meeting on grass, and Djokovic prevailed in four sets to advance to his first Wimbledon final,[72] and in the process ending the seven-and-a-half-year reign ofRoger Federer andRafael Nadal at the top of the rankings. At the2012 French Open, Tsonga and Djokovic met again in an important match, in the quarterfinals. After losing the first set, he rallied to take the next two sets and held two match points on Djokovic's serve in the fourth set before the Serb fought back to force a tie-break. Despite Tsonga's saving set points in the breaker, Djokovic took one at the third opportunity. This forced a deciding set, which Tsonga lost after more than four hours of play.[73]
They met again two months later at theOlympics, with Tsonga losing in straight sets in the quarterfinals.[74] They met in the final of the2012 China Open, with Tsonga again losing in straight sets.[75] The pair were drawn in the same pool for the2012 ATP World Tour Finals. Tsonga lost his first (of three) round-robin matches to Djokovic.[76] It was his fifth loss to Djokovic in 2012.
They then met in the third round of the2014 Rogers Cup, with Tsonga scoring his first win over Djokovic since the 2010 Australian Open with a straight-set victory. Prior to this victory, he had lost his last nine matches and 18 sets to Djokovic. They met again in the quarterfinals of the2016 US Open, where Tsonga lost on a retirement after losing the first two sets.
After two-and-a-half-years they met again in the second round of the2019 Australian Open, where Djokovic won in straight sets.
Tsonga andRoger Federer have played 18 times, with Federer leading 12–6. They have met six times in Grand Slam tournaments with Federer leading 4–2; including their five-set matches in the quarterfinals of2011 Wimbledon and2013 Australian Open. Tsonga's victory at 2011 Wimbledon saw him become the first man in Grand Slam history to defeat Federer after dropping the first two sets. They have also one Grand Slam semifinal meeting in the2010 Australian Open, with Federer winning in straight sets.
They have played in the2011 ATP World Tour Finals final with Federer winning in three-sets. The pair have also met in twoATP World Tour Masters 1000 finals. The first was in the2011 BNP Paribas Masters, with Federer winning his first title in Bercy, and the second was in the2014 Rogers Cup, with Tsonga winning his second Masters 1000 title.
Their most recent meeting came at the2019 Halle Open, with Federer defeating Tsonga in 3 tight sets.
There are a number of achievements that Tsonga has attained over theBig Four of tennis.
Tsonga was known for his offensive baseline style of play but was also able to mix his style of play up by rushing to the net. His movement around the court was considered to be very good, considering his height. Tsonga is also known for his ability to serve well under pressure, having saved 67% of the break points he faced in his career. His two weaknesses were his return of serve and to a lesser extent his backhand.
Tsonga's serve is one of his fastest, strongest and most dominant shots, mixing both slice and speed, enabling him to create and win easier points, such as an ace or a one-two-punch. Because of the action of his serve, which is dramatically abbreviated, he does very well to create as much power as he does, with speeds of up to 237 km/h (147 mph).[77]
Tsonga has achieved his best results on hard courts, most notably on the formerPlexicushion Prestige surface at the Australian Open, where he made the final in 2008, the semifinals in 2010, and the quarterfinals in 2009, 2013, and 2017. In his career on the ATP circuit, the majority of his final appearances have come on hard courts. On grass, he reached the semifinals atWimbledon in 2011 and 2012 and the quarterfinals in 2010 and 2016; he also reached the final of theQueen's Club Championships in 2011. In general, Tsonga has struggled on clay, although his clay-court skills improved as his career progressed, as evidenced by his 2012 season, where he reached the quarterfinals at the French Open,Monte-Carlo, andRome. In 2013, he reached the two first clay court semifinals of his career, first at the2013 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, where he lost toRafael Nadal,[78] and at the2013 French Open, where he lost toDavid Ferrer after beating No. 3Roger Federer in the quarterfinals. He won his first clay-court tournament at the2017 Lyon Open.
Tsonga is known for his aggressive groundstrokes. His forehand and backhand are both effective in setting up points. His powerful, heavy and accurate forehand is his most consistent shot, especially when delivered down the line. Although his backhand is generally not as strong as his forehand during the rallies, he is very capable of hitting attacking shots on his backhand wing. His net play is skillful, especially on attack. He can play both two-handed andone-handed backhand. He added the one-handed backhand to his repertoire midway through 2011, as was evident in his matches against Andy Murray in the final of Queen's Club and against Federer in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon. Although rarely used as a groundstroke in a neutral rally, it is particularly effective as a passing shot down the line or cross-court.
During the off-season in 2009, Tsonga switched rackets from Wilson to Babolat. He was usingBabolat AeroPro Drive+ racket, but in July 2018, changed to the Babolat Pure Strike. His strings are LUXiLON Alu Power Rough strings. He is sponsored byAdidas for his attire.[79]
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | P# | DNQ | A | Z# | PO | G | S | B | NMS | NTI | P | NH |
| Tournament | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | SR | W–L | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | A | A | 1R | F | QF | SF | 3R | 4R | QF | 4R | A | 4R | QF | 3R | 2R | 1R | A | A | 0 / 13 | 37–13 | 74% |
| French Open | Q2 | 1R | A | A | A | 4R | 4R | 3R | QF | SF | 4R | SF | 3R | 1R | A | 2R | A | 1R | 1R | 0 / 13 | 28–13 | 68% |
| Wimbledon | A | A | A | 4R | A | 3R | QF | SF | SF | 2R | 4R | 3R | QF | 3R | A | 3R | NH | 1R | A | 0 / 12 | 32–12 | 73% |
| US Open | Q2 | A | A | 3R | 3R | 4R | A | QF | 2R | A | 4R | QF | QF | 2R | A | 1R | A | A | A | 0 / 10 | 24–10 | 71% |
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 5–3 | 8–2 | 11–4 | 12–3 | 13–4 | 13–4 | 10–3 | 12–4 | 11–3 | 13–4 | 7–4 | 2–1 | 4–4 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0 / 48 | 121–48 | 72% |
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 2008 | Australian Open | Hard |  Novak Djokovic | 6–4, 4–6, 3–6, 6–7(2–7) |
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 2011 | ATP Tour finals, London | Hard (i) |  Roger Federer | 3–6, 7–6(8–6), 3–6 |
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 2008 | Paris Masters | Hard (i) |  David Nalbandian | 6–3, 4–6, 6–4 |
| Runner–up | 2011 | Paris Masters | Hard (i) | Roger Federer | 1–6, 6–7(3–7) |
| Winner | 2014 | Canadian Open | Hard | Roger Federer | 7–5, 7–6(7–3) |
| Runner–up | 2015 | Shanghai Masters | Hard | Novak Djokovic | 2–6, 4–6 |
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 2009 | Shanghai Masters | Hard |  Julien Benneteau |  Mariusz FyrstenbergMarcin Matkowski | 6–2, 6–4 |
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silver | 2012 | 2012 London Olympics | Grass | Michaël Llodra |  Bob BryanMike Bryan | 4–6, 6–7(2–7) |
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | ATP Newcomer of the Year 2007 | Succeeded by |
