Richard Gasquet to say farewell to Latin America, replaces Shapovalov

Frenchman Richard ‘The Virtuoso’ Gasquet will participate at UTS Guadalajara later this week, representing his farewell to Latin America. The 38-year-old will retire at Roland-Garros, so the matches at UTS Guadalajara will be among the last of his impressive career.

Gasquet replaces Denis Shapovalov, who has withdrawn – due to back injury – after his title run at the Dallas Open.

“I am really disappointed but I have to withdraw from UTS Guadalajara. I have been dealing with some back pain since the end of my week in Dallas, and unfortunately it is still hurting today, and I am not fit to play yet. It is very frustrating because I love to compete in UTS events, and I was super excited to come to Guadalajara. I had even changed my February schedule in order to be at UTS Guadalajara. I did my best to recover in time but it’s not just possible – my sincere apologies to UTS fans – I cant wait to see you very soon.”

‘The Virtuoso’ has played three UTS events, reaching the semi-finals of the first two editions of UTS back in 2020. At UTS 3, he went one step further by reaching the final – falling to Alex ‘The Demon’ de Minaur.

However, at this edition, he won’t have it easy, as he has Casper Ruud, Fabio Fognini, and – fellow Frenchman – Adrian Mannarino in his group.

Gasquet hasn’t played a professional match in Mexico since Acapulco in 2010, where he defeated former Roland Garros champion Carlos Moya.

UTS Guadalajara takes place from February 14 to 16 at the Centro Panamericano de Tenis in Guadalajara, with tickets able to be bought here.