Stan Wawrinka recently played his final Roland Garros match.
The Swiss icon, who is set to retire from his playing career at the end of this year, was defeated by Dutchman Jesper de Jong in the first round.
Wawrinka took in the adulation from the crowd, before receiving heartfelt messages from Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Stan Wawrinka is OUT of Roland Garros… where does he rank amongst the all-time greats? 🐐
Not everyone was happy with the circumstances in which Wawrinka waved goodbye to the event.
Steve Johnson, the former world number 21, has taken particular issue with one aspect of Wawrinka’s tournament exit.
Steve Johnson criticises Roland Garros organisers for not putting Stan Wawrinka on Court Philippe Chatrier
Court Philippe Chatrier is the centrepiece of Roland Garros.
The stadium has played host to some of the greatest Roland Garros finals in history, including Stan Wawrinka’s triumph against Novak Djokovic in the 2015 final.
Therefore, some may have found it strange that Wawrinka did not contest his final French Open match on Court Philippe Chatrier, but rather the event’s third largest court – Simonne Mathieu.
“Did Stan ask not to be on Chatrier? Did they give him an option?” former ATP player Steve Johnson exclaimed while speaking on the Nothing Major Show.
“Maybe he wanted to play on Simonne Mathieu. I don’t think he would have, but I will give the benefit of the doubt.
“But that is a miss on the French Tennis Federation’s behalf.
“They should have put the two French guys, Mannarino has not won a clay court match at a Masters series or a Slam since about 2004, so might as well just put him on any court outside of Chatrier.
“And Humbert has not really done enough to garner that match.
“I think it’s a big miss. I was shocked seeing it.”
Stan Wawrinka or Andy Murray… who is the greater player? Let us know why below 👇
The four matches that took place on Court Philippe Chatrier on Monday were: Iga Swiatek vs Emerson Jones, Elena Rybakina vs Veronika Erjavec, Ugo Humbert vs Adrian Mannarino and Hugo Gaston vs Gael Monfils.
Where next for Stan Wawrinka?
Wawrinka will now embark on the final grass-court swing of his career.
The Swiss star, who has underwhelmed on the surface in the past, will seek to attain a wildcard for this year’s Wimbledon Championships.
At the start of April, Wawrinka outlined his plan for the summer.
“I would love to play something on the grass. Hopefully Wimbledon,” Wawrinka said ahead of the Barcelona Open, as per Tennis.com.
“Then I play Gstaad, Estoril. Hopefully I can play US Open.
“We will see if I play a tournament before, Cincinnati [qualifying] or maybe a challenger. After, we’ll see. Basel, for sure. Lyon also.”
