Cornet announces her impending retirement after Roland Garros

Alize Cornet has announced she will play her final tournament next month at Roland Garros. The 34-year-old Frenchwoman confirmed her impending retirement in an interview that aired on Saturday on French television channel Canal+.

“Hello everyone,” Cornet said in a video post on social media. “You might already know what I’m about to tell you, but in one month I will play my last tournament at the French Open and then retire from professional tennis. Somehow it’s been really complicated to play with this in the back of my mind for the past few months, because even though I feel like the time is right and I couldn’t dream of a better way to say goodbye, my heart feels heavy of leaving 19 years of my life behind me.

“But I also know that many exciting things are ahead of me and that I will be able to turn that page, knowing that I gave everything to my sport from the very beginning to the very end. I am proud of this, and I hope you guys will miss me a little bit. I will definitely miss you.

“So thank you for everything and I’ll see you at Roland Garros for the last dance.”

Cornet made her debut on the Hologic WTA Tour as a 15-year-old wild card at the French Open in 2005. Over her 19-year career, the Nice native captured six WTA titles, made the Rome final as an 18-year-old in 2008, and reached a career-high ranking of No.11 in 2009.

She will finish her career having made the Round of 16 or better at all four Grand Slams, with her best Slam result coming just two years ago in an emotional run to her first major quarterfinal at the Australian Open.

In a remarkable example of her resilience, Cornet holds the Open Era record for consecutive Grand Slam main-draw appearances. In a streak that began in 2007 and remains unbroken, Cornet has appeared in 68 consecutive majors.

Cornet amassed 25 Top 10 wins in her career, including four over reigning World No.1s. She defeated then-No.1 Serena Williams three times in a single season in 2014. Most recently, Cornet ended Iga Swiatek’s 37-match win streak in 2022, defeating the Pole in straight sets on the grass at Wimbledon.