LONDON – Fabio Fognini played an unimaginable match at Wimbledon and realised that no planned farewell could top it. On Wednesday, he announced in the All England Club press room that he would not play professional tennis again.
“It was the perfect way to say goodbye to this sport,” said the best Italian male player of his era and one of the key figures behind the remarkable rise of Italian tennis, now thriving with Jannik Sinner, Jasmine Paolini, Lorenzo Musetti, and Matteo Berrettini.
What Fognini experienced on Monday, June 30, in the first round of Wimbledon 2025 was unlike anything else.
He played like in his prime against Carlos Alcaraz on the sport’s most iconic stage. He pushed the defending champion to a fifth set, dazzled the crowd with his boundless talent, and relished every moment in a packed stadium that gave him a standing ovation.
His eight-year-old son, Federico, watched from the front row — a source of special pride for the nine-time ATP title winner. After the match, Fognini asked the Spaniard for his shirt to give to his son as a keepsake.
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Fognini’s original plan was to say goodbye to tennis at the tournament where he won his biggest title, but he realised he couldn’t endure many more months of the demands of the tour. “My dream was to finish next year at the Monte Carlo Masters 1000,” he admitted. The Italian was the champion in Monaco in 2019.
Montecarlo it’s where he grew up, where he now lives with his family, and where he has many close friends. However, his body became the main obstacle to completing his original plan, and it became very difficult for him to picture himself on tour through April 2026.
He got “lucky” with the draw in London and ended up playing the Centre Court’s opening match against the defending champion.
“He could play until he’s 50!” Alcaraz said in frustration when things weren’t going his way that day.
Despite his technical mastery and tactical brilliance still being intact, at 38, Fognini’s body wouldn’t let him go much further.
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“I don’t want to go back to the Challengers. My motivation is still high because I love competing. I’m still in love with this sport. I fell in love with it as a kid and that’s never changed. I suffered a lot with injuries over the last three years of my career. I always tried to come back strong, but after 35, it’s not easy,” he said.
“Tennis has given me so much—it’s given me everything,” said Fognini, who has been married for nine years to Italian Flavia Pennetta, the 2015 US Open champion.
“I got to play in an era that will always be the greatest. I played against Roger, Rafa, and Nole. Winning a Slam for me was impossible, I have to be honest. I spoke with my wife two days ago and told her I had made my decision. She said, ‘Okay, you have to shoot,’” Fognini explained.
And the former world No. 7 declared: “I’m really going to miss the competition.”
