Stan Wawrinka has waved a fond goodbye to the French Open after losing 6-3 3-6 6-3 6-4 to Jesper de Jong in the first round in Paris.
The 41-year-old Swiss, a three-time Grand Slam winner, is retiring at the end of the season. He made his final Roland Garros appearance 21 years after his first.
De Jong sealed the victory with a whipped forehand winner, then urged the fans to applaud Wawrinka, whose face was almost as red as the baking-hot clay as temperatures soared.
"It's hard, it's hard to say goodbye to you here," an emotional Wawrinka said. "It's because of Roland Garros that I wanted to become a tennis player."
The veteran player was given an ovation at Court Simonne-Mathieu, where he got fans to do a Mexican wave before leaving. He had been scheduled to face Arthur Fils but the rising French star pulled out of the tournament with a hip issue.
