Wesley Koolhof and Nikola Mektic were eliminated from Nitto ATP Finals semi-final contention on Thursday when they lost a heartbreaking Match Tie-break to Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten. The defeat had extra meaning for Koolhof, who played his final ATP Tour match.
After the match, Koolhof’s fellow players and members of ATP staff took to the court to honour him for a standout career.
“Obviously mixed emotions. It’s been a pleasure to play on the Tour for the past almost 20 years, so thank you all for taking the time to come out here on centre court and especially Mekta for playing with me in my final year,” Koolhof said. “It’s always been a dream to basically finish my career here in Turin at the Nitto ATP Finals, so very grateful and happy to finish my career here, even if we didn’t make it today.”
[ATP APP]Koolhof won 21 tour-level titles, including the 2020 Nitto ATP Finals with Mektic and 2023 Wimbledon with Neal Skupski.
Stefanos Tsitsipas was among the players who joined Koolhof on court. The Dutchman's fiancée, Julia Goerges, also was there.
“Thank you all for coming out, appreciate it a lot,” Koolhof said. “Thanks everyone for the support throughout the years.”
[NEWSLETTER FORM]