March 22, 2012 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Former Australian Open finalist Fernando Gonzalez of Chile has announced his retirement from the sport, after a 5-7, 6-4, 6-7(3) loss to Nicolas Mahut of France at the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. Gonzalez wants to be remembered as someone who gave “100 percent every single time when he went to the court. And, of course, I think is much better to remember as a person than as a tennis player.”
Gonzalez was only able to play four tournaments last year after undergoing right hip surgery in Oct. 2010. His best 2011 result was reaching the third round at Wimbledon. He reached the 2007 Australian Open final, won 11 career singles titles, a gold medal in doubles and bronze medal in singles at the 2004 Olympic Games, along with a silver medal in singles in 2008.
