Tennis: from the masterclass against Nadal to the cardboard against Federer, these victories of Tsonga that we will not forget

A big page of French tennis will turn to Roland-Garros.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 37 on April 17, will be the first of the gang of four (with Monfils, Gasquet and Simon) to put his rackets away for good.

If he never managed to win the Grail of a Grand Slam (it is not good to be contemporary with the Big Four), the former world No. 5, with 18 singles titles (including two Masters 1000 ), a final and two halves of a Major, a Davis Cup or an Olympic silver medal in doubles, has one of the finest records in French tennis.

He is one of the few players to have beaten Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Murray several times.

And of the more than 700 games played so far in his career, some victories have marked the collective memory.

When Muhammad Ali knocks out Nadal

January 2008. Australia is passionate about Manceau, Andy Murray's scorer in the first round and designated double of boxer Mohamed Ali.

In the semi-final, against Rafael Nadal, Tsonga floats like a butterfly and stings like a well-muscled bee.

The Habs, then 38th in the standings, literally crush the Spaniard, who has rarely been so drunk with the blows.

Violent.

Brutal.

The sprinkler sprinkled, as the Mallorcan ball seems anemic in front of Tsonga's strike force.

6-2, 6-3, 6-2 (85% of points scored on 1st serve, 18 aces, 5 break points successful out of 7).

A real correction which reveals the blue-white-red hope in the eyes of the world and propels him towards his first Grand Slam final (where he will see Novak Djokovic win the first of his twenty Majors).

We think then that it will not be the last…

Bercy a lot

November 2008. In front of a boiling Bercy, against defending champion David Nalbandian, Tsonga won his second title on the circuit, after Bangkok a few months earlier.

But above all his first Masters 1000, after having dismissed Novak Djokovic in passing.

In a tasty opposition of style, the Frenchman won in three sets (6-3, 4-6, 6-4) and qualified for the Masters.

He will have to wait six years to win his second Masters 1000, in Canada, beating Murray, Djokovic and finally Federer.

Revenge for Serbian

January 2010. As we find ourselves in Melbourne, this time in the quarter-finals.

Facing Novak Djokovic, the standoff of almost four hours is enormous (7-6, 6-7, 1-6, 6-3, 6-1).

Intense.

Especially two unbreathable first sets.

For the second time in his career (the first being… in the previous round against Almagro), Tsonga manages to win in five rounds by winning a physical challenge.

After citing nausea and stomach cramps, Djokovic collapsed in the home stretch.

“I was probably in better shape than him, he played incredible tennis during the first three sets where the level of play was fantastic, says the Frenchman.

Afterwards he declined, but hey, it had already happened to him too and he had won in the end… ”In the semi-finals,

Federer buried in his garden

July 2011. Strawberries with whipped cream and champagne are out to see Master Roger in the Wimbledon quarter-finals.

A pleasant part of the campaign for the Swiss, who leads 6-3, 7-6 (3) against Tsonga and seems to be heading quietly towards his seventh crown of King of England.

The Basel is all the more confident (and supporters with it) that he has never let a match slip away after winning the first two sets.

Fortunately, the French ignore the statistics and will start to produce an extraordinary level, almost indecent, from the start of the third round.

In levitation, he wins the following three sets 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 and commits the most beautiful crime of lèse-majesté.

"I played an incredible match, everything came in, it's crazy," he summed up after his feat.

In the semi-finals,

Roland's song

June 2013. Roger Federer sometimes bit the dust at Roland-Garros.

Most often against Nadal.

In the quarter-finals, the Swiss will not however weigh very heavily against an imperial Tsonga, who takes less than two hours to win (7-5, 6-3, 6-3) to afford his fifth half. -Grand Slam final, the first on clay in Paris.

“He played very well in all areas of the game. He was better.

It was crystal clear.

No doubt, I was impressed by his way of playing, summarizes Federer.

With the support of the public, Jo can go all the way.

“In the semi-final, Tsonga, who had not conceded a single round until then, will be curtly stopped by David Ferrer at the time of digestion in front of a very bare stands.

"Roland, I love you"

June 2015. Here again, we are in the quarter-finals in Paris.

While not a favorite, Tsonga quietly leads 6-1, 5-2 against world No. 5 Nishikori when a rare incident occurs.

Weakened by the strong gusts, a piece of one of the Philippe-Chatrier court noticeboards came off and landed in the audience, causing three minor injuries.

We came close to tragedy.

The game is interrupted for a good half hour, which cuts the momentum of the French a little and puts the Japanese back in the saddle.

At the end of the match, the No. 15 at ATP manages to get back into "bulldozer" mode to conclude and again offer himself a place in the last four.

Like Gustavo Kuerten, he writes “Roland, I love you” surrounded by a heart on the Central.