Injury heartbreak for tearful Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as he bows out at French Open for final time and Casper Ruud advances

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga signed off with a typically spirited display as his Roland-Garros retirement party ended with injury heartbreak in his first-round defeat to world No. 8 Casper Ruud.

The 37-year-old confirmed he would be hanging up his tennis shoes after the Grand Slam, but he was hoping to prolong retirement by upsetting the eighth seed. Ad/> With his family, plus compatriots Gael Monfils and tournament director Amelie Mauresmo, among those watching on, Tsonga was able to take the first set in a tie-break as the home crowd spurred their Frenchman on.

/> Roland-GarrosFired-up Tsonga wins first set against Ruud as Roland-Garros crowd erupts3 HOURS AGO Ruud fought back to take the next two sets, but the supporters then broke out into the French national anthem when Tsonga was battling to force a decider. Tsonga almost did just that, having broken in the 11th game, but when serving to take the match to a fifth set, his body – as it has done over the last few years – sadly let him down.

Visibly struggling and holding his shoulder, Tsonga called for the trainer just before the fourth-set tie-break, and though the Frenchman soldiered on, he was unable to win a single point in the breaker, bowing out after the tears flowed while getting a standing ovation before the seventh and final point. Ruud goes on to face Emil Ruusuvuori after winning 6-7(6) 7-6(4) 6-2 7-6(0), while Tsonga retires with 18 ATP titles, a Davis Cup victory with France in 2017 and an Olympic doubles silver medal from London 2012, having reached a career-high singles ranking of fifth.