Three-time Slam champion ends career with win at ATP Finals

A multiple Slam champion earned the rare honour of bowing out with an ATP Finals match win to end his 18-year professional career.

Romanian talent Horia Tecau has played his last professional match on the after his group stage ended at the ATP Finals.

Alongside partner Kevin Krawietz, Tecau was seeded eighth at the season-ending event in Turin.

After losing their first two round robin encounters, their journey at the Finals was already over when they took on fourth seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos, a pair who had already qualified for the last four.

Despite essentially being a dead rubber, the match between the four men was played in good spirits.

Krawietz and Tecau claimed victory 6-3, 6-7 (1-7), 10-6 to wrap up Tecau’s 19-season career.

Granollers and Zeballos embraced Tecau at the net in a display of respect for the Romanian.

2021 was Tecau’s seventh career appearance at the ATP Finals, making his event debut in 2011.

The 36-year-old won his first Slam at the 2012 Australian Open, in the mixed event with Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

Her then won two men’s doubles titles in 2015 and 2017, plus the ATP Finals doubles in 2015, all three alongside Jean-Julien Rojer.

Finally, Tecau achieved his career-high doubles ranking of world number two immediately after that 2015 ATP Finals title, Rojer and he ending the year as the top-ranked doubles pair.

He also won an Olympic doubles silver medal in men’s doubles at Rio 2016 with compatriot Florin Mergea.

Overall, the Romanian claimed 38 tour-level doubles titles, including 20 with Rojer.

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