Fernando Gonzalez played the last match of his career on Wednesday evening, losing to to Nicolas Mahut 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(3) in the Sony Ericsson Open night-session opener.
He was presented a commemorative frame by ATP Executive Chairman and President Brad Drewett, and Sony Ericsson Open Executive Vice President and Tournament Director Adam Barrett. A video tribute with messages goodbyes from Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, the Bryan Brothers and David Nalbandian was broadcast in the stadium.
“At the end, the video was great. It’s not only about tennis. It’s also about friends,” Gonzalez said. “I mean, we’ve been playing against each other many times, but at the end of the day we are friends. We have a great relationship. Of course, the atmosphere was great. We’re really far away from Chile, and there was little flags. There was my family here. I had a lot of friends, and I really enjoyed the moment.”
Gonzalez ended his career with a 370-202 overall record, wining 11 ATP World Tour titles. He was a finalist at the 2007 Australian Open. He won a gold medal in doubles in the 2004 Olympic games with Nicolas Massu and he also won a bronze medal in singles in 2004 and a silver medal in singles in 2008.