Goffin contemplated retirement, now surging at US Open

David Goffin has reached the second week at every major, climbed to No. 7 in the PIF ATP Rankings, made the championship match at the Nitto ATP Finals and claimed six ATP Tour titles. The 33-year-old Belgian has nothing to prove and at the end of last season, sitting outside the world’s Top 100, contemplated his future.

“I was like, ‘Oof, what am I doing? I am playing so bad. I cannot hold my racquet anymore. What do we do now? Is it enough for me or not? Can I do it physically? Am I still as fast as before? The endurance, is it still there or not? The tennis, am I too late?’” said Goffin, who was struggling with his knee at the time. “I don’t know. A lot of doubts.”

The Belgian was not battling for tour-level titles, but spots in main draws. Was it worth fighting for that? Goffin had a decision to make.

“I still have the feeling that I have good tennis in my racquet," Goffin thought. "I just want to show and prove to myself that I can still do it.”

The four-time major quarter-finalist is showing that this week at the US Open, where he is into the third round. It is the first time he has advanced that far at this event since 2020, when he claimed an electric four-setter against Adrian Mannarino in the fourth round.

“It’s like a drug, especially when it’s a win like that because it’s a great fight. You suffer a lot, but it’s good to suffer like that. You suffer physically, but the match, you like it,” Goffin said. “Sometimes the past few months were tough because I was struggling with my confidence and my game. So you suffer, but more inside with yourself. So it’s not easy, it’s not a good fight.

“But when you fight with your opponent and you like it, you feel your legs, tough rallies, and you just try to stay there and win that match, it’s something that I will enjoy.”

A key moment came in the first round at Roland Garros, where Goffin defeated Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in five sets. After losing that match, Mpetshi Perricard became the talk of the tennis world with his big serving at Wimbledon, where he made the fourth round.

“Every win in a Grand Slam is something special, because you have to win it. Especially in best of five, it’s tough and it’s a great feeling. I think [the match against Mpetshi Perricard] was a key match in my comeback,” Goffin said. “It was a really important one because I proved to myself that I was able to win a good fight again.”

In his mind, the victory was a signal that there would be more big wins like it in the future. There was reason to continue pushing forward.

“You have to put in a lot of work, you have to make a good schedule, a good structure with the team. That’s what I did with my team and it came back — it paid off week after week,” Goffin said. “All of the sudden I’m close to the Top 50. It’s something you see now, it looks easy, but it was not the past few months."

Goffin will play Tomas Machac for a place in the fourth round. These are the opportunities for which he has been working hard.

“It’s a different feeling because I feel that now, coming back from where I was a year ago, I am feeling stronger than before,” Goffin said. “Especially mentally because I built from zero something that maybe is stronger than before. Of course, I’m turning 34 this year and you cannot turn back the clock, but I think I can be stronger mentally and hopefully it will help me to do some great tournaments in the future.”.

To top it all off, Goffin and his wife, Stephanie, are expecting their first child.

“I’m super excited. I’m so happy with my wife. It’s going to be in two weeks, mid-September,” Goffin said. “She’s calling me every day so I’m under stress every day, seeing if I have to go back or not. But everything is under control, I can finish the tournament. But we are very excited.

“It is something also that inspired me to show my little girl that her dad is a great tennis player and prove to her that I can be a good tennis player again. When she will be like one or two, in two years, maybe she will understand a little bit more tennis and what I am doing and hopefully she will be proud.”