Jo-Wilfried Tsonga set to come out of retirement for 'final match ever' in Lithuania next month
ATPFriday, 27 February 2026 at 21:00
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga retired from tennis four years ago, but his tennis career has been quietly simmering for some time now ready to start up once more. The occasion has finally come as he is going to make a return to the court in an exhibition clash in what is dubbed as his final match ever.
The Frenchman enjoyed a thrilling career at the top of tennis. A prominent youngster whose rise was poorly timed with the domination of the Big Three. Injuries played their part in him eventually retiring but for just one match he will be returning to the court.
He will take on Lithuanian Ricardas Berankis. He retired in 2025 and is also set to play his final tennis match ever. Tsonga is the chosen player who will compete against him with it coming in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius.
Berankis reached a career high ranking of world number 50 back in May 2016. He reached the third round of Grand Slam tournaments on four separate occasions and reached a brace of ATP 250 finals in 2012 and 2017, losing both. The 35-year-old has picked up a two top 10 victories, both coming against former Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic.
The highly anticipated clash between two returning tennis talents will take place on March 28 at the SEB Arena which can hold 1,278 for tennis matches.
It will be a second meeting between the pair after they clashed at Wimbledon in 2019 with Tsonga winning the match 7-6(4), 6-3, 6-3 before being knocked out in the third round to Rafael Nadal.
One more chance for Tsonga to say goodbye to illustrious tennis career
Tsonga really made a name for himself when he reached the 2008 Australian Open final. He took the first set off Novak Djokovic before the Serbian ran away with it to win a maiden Grand Slam title. Tsonga has not reached a major final since but has racked up five semi-finals. Another came in Australia while two came in Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
That same year he reached the final in Melbourne, he made the final of the Paris Masters, taking down David Nalbandian on home soil for a first Masters 1000 title. He reached the final three years, but this time was on the end of a defeat to Roger Federer. He then lost the 2011 ATP Finals in London to the Swiss in three sets.
He extracted his revenge in the 2014 Canadian Open. His fourth and subsequently last Masters 1000 final came in the Shanghai Masters, losing to Djokovic in another big final. He reached the Davis Cup Finals final on four separate occasions with France, leading them to glory in 2017.
In total he made 30 ATP finals, winning 18 of them. The last came in the Moselle Open in 2019 where he won his second title of the year in France against Aljaz Bedene. He played 133 matches against top 10 players, winning 45 of them and reached a career high ranking of world number five in February 2012.
Reoccurring injuries derailed his career and after 18 years of competing with the best, he hung up his racket at the 2022 French Open, losing out to eventual finalist Casper Ruud in four sets. For one more time, he will pick up his racket and step onto the court as he closes this chapter in his life for good.
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