Tennis
Stan Wawrinka retires: final match ends in defeat to Jiri Lehecka in Basel
At 41, Stan Wawrinka played the last match of his career in Basel on Tuesday, losing 7-5, 7-6 (7/2) to Jiri Lehecka in the first round of the Swiss ATP 500. He leaves with three Grand Slam titles and the one-handed backhand that carried him through the Big 3 era.
by Camille Vasseur · 2 min read
The Saint Jakobshalle in Basel said its goodbye over two evenings. On Monday, Stan Wawrinka was celebrated for more than an hour, surrounded by his family and by Martina Hingis, to a standing ovation. On Tuesday night he played the 985th match of his career, the last one: beaten 7-5, 7-6 (7/2) in the first round of the Swiss ATP 500 by Jiri Lehecka, a player 17 years his junior.
The Czech, stronger in the decisive moments, took it in the end. Wawrinka stayed level through two tight sets and treated the crowd to a few one-handed backhands, his signature shot, the one that made him one of the rare players to carve out a place in the sun during the Big 3’s unchallenged reign. “It’s hard tonight,” he told Swiss television, close to tears. “I’m sad, but I’m smiling.” He then thanked those who had accompanied him over the years: “Thank you for always being there.”
Federer’s message
Roger Federer had written to him before the tournament, first in German, then in French: “I’m thinking of you. I miss you. I love you, my man. Enjoy the moment in Basel, my home. See you soon.” The two Swiss won Olympic doubles gold together in Beijing in 2008. Novak Djokovic paid tribute to his old rival as well.
A career built against the very best
Born in Lausanne, Wawrinka turned professional in 2002 and won 16 ATP titles, including the 2014 Australian Open, the 2015 French Open and the 2016 US Open, climbing to world number three. He lifted the Davis Cup with Switzerland in 2014 and is one of only three players to have beaten Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Murray at a Grand Slam tournament. His last title came in Geneva in 2017; the years that followed brought four operations, two on his left knee, two on his left foot.
In the stands, hundreds of “Stan the Man” shirts watched the final exchanges, to the sound of Elton John’s “Your Song”. At 41, Wawrinka leaves the tour a few weeks after Kei Nishikori and Gael Monfils. “I was lucky to be around them, to play them, and now and then to beat them,” he said back in 2024 about his greatest rivals.