Richard Gasquet

Born: June 18, 1986 in Béziers (Occitanie)
Height: 1.83 m
Plays: Right-handed

Great anticipation surrounded Gasquet in France when he debuted at an ATP event – Monte Carlo ’02 before turning 16. In the opening round, as a qualifier [589], he astounded spectators by overcoming former French Open semifinalist Franco Squillari, becoming one of the youngest match victors at the main level of the Open Era. This milestone preceded his first Challenger event, which he subsequently conquered (Montauban) not dropping a set; a month earlier at the French Open, he’d seized the opening set from Albert Costa, who claimed the trophy two weeks later! No one questioned that the young prodigy possessed remarkable talent to be hypothetically remembered as one of the best players of the first decade of the new century.
For the following two years, Gasquet was frequently compared to his contemporary, two weeks older Rafael Nadal. They finally clashed in a captivating semifinal in Monte Carlo ’05 (after Gasquet had outlasted Roger Federer a round earlier, surviving three match points). Afterwards, their once-parallel paths diverged starkly (18-0 for Nadal in the end, the second most one-sided Head-to-Head in modern times) – the Spaniard emerged as the ‘King of Clay,’ an undisputed No. 2 in the world for several years behind Federer, while Gasquet never breached the Top 5, soon recognizing that two players a year his junior (Novak Đoković and Andy Murray) were destined for greater heights. Not only the Monte Carlo semifinal, but also the Estoril ’07 final and Wimbledon ’08 fourth round, proved revealing – Gasquet displayed flashes of brilliance, yet lacked the endurance and resolve of his peers. That fourth-round encounter at Wimbledon ’08 would linger in Gasquet’s memory for the rest of his career; having bested Murray in their two prior meetings, he fell to the Scot despite nearing victory in three relatively straightforward sets. That defeat was no anomaly; it underscored Gasquet’s delicate psyche.
His exquisite backhand could captivate audiences in the grandest arenas, but tennis demands resilience in countless critical moments – a quality Gasquet sorely lacked. This inability to summon something extraordinary led to even more devastating two-set-to-love (MP-up) losses at the Australian Open in consecutive years (to Fernando González 10-12 in the 5th after four hours and Mikhail Youzhny after ~five hours – second time to him after such a long match). Therefore I believe those setbacks shaped Gasquet’s trajectory, even though he was merely 24 years old. It was clear he wouldn’t be a one Slam wonder.
The year 2013 marked the peak of Gasquet’s career – he secured three titles (Doha, Montpellier, Moscow) and reached the US Open semifinal, overcoming a lingering five-set jinx by defeating Milos Raonic and David Ferrer in consecutive five-set battles; the latter victory was particularly noteworthy, as Gasquet snapped a streak of five straight losses to the Spaniard without winning a set. Another celebrated five-set triumph came at Wimbledon ’07, where he toppled Andy Roddick in a rare scenario among five-setters, clinching the final three sets despite nearly losing each. That win propelled him to his first major semifinal; his third and final one also occurred at Wimbledon (2015), where he once again defied expectations by outlasting Stan Wawrinka in a thrilling showdown.
Gasquet’s very long career – likewise Gaël Monfils‘ –  despite high hopes of the potent French federation, registers as a considerable let-down, though he enjoyed one of the most enduring careers, as evidenced by the number of tournaments he contested (only three men have played more main-level events than him). He reached 33 finals, three at the Masters 1000 level (Hamburg ’05, Toronto ’06, and Toronto ’12). Given twenty consecutive years in the Top 100, three Slam semifinals as well as three big finals, it’s a blow for Gasquet’s legacy he never won an ATP 500 title, also the fact he never played a semifinal at the French Open (only one quarterfinal, in 2016). Undoubtedly, his failure to ever defeat Nadal casts a shadow over his glorious tennis adventure, but he departed the court victorious against Đoković on one occasion in fourteen meetings, and several times when Federer (2-19 in their H2H) and Murray (4-9 H2H) stood across the net: Rome ’12 remains the most cherished memory because the fragile Gasquet was physically stronger than the Scot at least on that day.

Career record: 610-408 [ 420 events ]
Career titles: 16
Highest ranking: No. 7
Best GS results:
Roland Garros (quarterfinal 2016)
Wimbledon (semifinal 2007 & 2015)
US Open (semifinal 2013; quarterfinal 2015)
Davis Cup ’17 champion (played doubles in the final)
Hopman Cup ’17 champion