WATCH: Stan Wawrinka shows his gratitude to French Open crowd with a beautiful gesture after his last possible match at the event

Stan Wawrinka was the oldest player to enter the singles draw at the 2024 French Open.

WATCH: Stan Wawrinka shows his gratitude to French Open crowd with a beautiful gesture after his last possible match at the event

Stan Wawrinka showed his gratitude to the French Crowd (Via IMAGO/X)

Swiss legend Stan Wawrinka suffered a disappointing defeat in the second round of the French Open. The defeat left the 39-year-old almost emotional as the crowd chanted his name. But, the spotlight that stole everything was when he gave a little girl his racquet before leaving the court.

Wawrinka defeated Andy Murray in the first round of the French Open, as he looked sharper on the clay surface. In the second round, he played well pushing his opponent Russia’s Pavel Kotov in the first set but fell short in the end. He rallied back winning the third set after being 2-0 down but he failed to win the deciding set. Kotov beat the Swiss 7-6(5), 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(5).

It was a very painful defeat for Wawrinka because it was the third year in a row he has failed to win back-to-back matches at the Roland Garros. The 2015 Champion was the oldest player to enter the singles draw at the French Open, having made it to the draw 19 times. However, after the loss, the crowd kept chanting his name as he turned to wave to them. He later admitted it was the first time he had experienced such a moment.

FS Video
It’s the first time I’ve experienced such an atmosphere here. There were a lot of fans who came after the end of the match to Philippe-Chatrier. There was a crazy atmosphere, I really felt like I was playing at home.
Stan Wawrinka said at the post-match presser via lematin

While leaving the court, Wawrinka gave a little girl his racquet, with the girl overjoyed by the present. The camera zoomed in as she kept jumping joyously, with other fans were also happy for her. Perhaps, it was a gift to her, for staying up late to see the match.

Stan Wawrinka aiming to play at the Roland Garros at 40

The likes of Diego Schwartzman and Dominic Thiem have both waved goodbye to Roland Garros after playing their last match. But, Stan Wawrinka, who is 39, is still willing to play in the next year’s edition when he will be 40.

The three-time Grand Slam Champion maintained that he still has the desire to play despite his age and hopes to have consistent victories.

It’s in twelve months and at my age, we can’t see that far. The desire is there, I think the level is too. We now have to win matches and maintain a certain ranking to be able to play this type of tournament.
Stan Wawrinka added
Stan Wawrinka
Stan Wawrinka (Image via Imago)

However, Wawrinka’s season hasn’t gone best for him as he has been competing majorly at the ATP Challenger in the past few weeks. But, he can boast of his Grand Slam win-loss record which currently stands at 157–67.

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