Stan Wawrinka isn’t hanging up his racket just yet after outlining his hopes to return to the Tour in time for the next Grand Slam.
The 36-year-old Swiss hasn’t played a competitive match since his first round loss to Lloyd Harris at the Doha Open last March. Since then, Wawrinka has undergone two surgeries on his left foot. His first occurred shortly after his match in Doha followed by a second in June. The operations come on top of two left knee procedures he underwent in August 2017.
Providing a brief update during an interview with Le Parisien newspaper, Wawrinka confirmed that he intends to play at the French Open which he won back in 2015. He is the only player outside of the Big Three to have won the tournament since 2005.
“Yes, (I will play) Roland Garros, yes,” he said at the release of the film “Maison de retraite”, for which he was associate producer.
Elaborating further on his decision to stage a comeback to the Tour at his age, Wawrinka said he is doing so due to his love for the sport. During his career, he has scored five wins over a world No.1 player in a Grand Slam. He is also one of just three players to have scored at least one win over a member of the Big Four in a major event.
“People often ask me why I’m trying to come back after my injury and carry on, but it’s because I’m passionate about tennis, I love the spectators,” he said. “When I walk out on court, I make sure I remember that it’s a game. The whole basis of tennis is that we tell children to “go and play”! A lot of people forget that when they turn professional: they see tennis as a job. What motivates me the most is reminding myself that I’m going to play, have fun and enjoy myself!”
Wawrinka has been ranked as high as third in the world and has won 16 ATP titles. He has won more than 500 matches on the ATP Tour and earned over $34.7M in prize money so far in his career.
The French Open will begin on May 16th.
