Garcia falls to Pera in the first round of her last Roland-Garros
Emotions ran high on Court Suzanne-Lenglen at the start of the week. Three days after announcing that this Roland-Garros would be the last of her career, the 31-year-old Frenchwoman took to the court with tears in her eyes.
The former world No. 4 wanted to enjoy one last time at this clay-court Grand Slam in front of her home crowd and hoped to overcome Bernarda Pera, an opponent Garcia knows well, as the Frenchwoman had beaten the American at Indian Wells earlier in the season.
Supported by her fans, Garcia started the match well, initially leading but faltered on the opponent's serve, which was a recurring issue throughout the match for the Frenchwoman.
Pera broke serve first at 4-4, before sealing the first set in the next game. Mentally struggling, Garcia then conceded a double break at the outset, before managing a comeback, reducing some of her deficit.
However, the damage was already done, and after missing additional chances to break back in the final game, Garcia saw the left-handed American, ranked 83rd in the world, close out the match with a final winning forehand (6-4, 6-4).
Not efficient enough on return, the Frenchwoman gave it her all, presented some tightly contested games, but it wasn't enough against Pera, who was solid in her 1h29 victory. Pera will face Donna Vekic in the next round.
As for Garcia, this marked her last singles appearance at Roland-Garros. Before competing in doubles with Diane Parry (who also exited in the first round), the Frenchwoman savored the atmosphere on Court Suzanne-Lenglen one last time.
Her best result in the singles tournament at Porte d’Auteuil remains her quarterfinal match eight years ago, in 2017, where she was defeated by Karolina Pliskova.
