Caroline Garcia, beaten by Karolina Muchova, stops in the second round of the Cincinnati Open

Having met in the afternoon, Bertrand Perret, Caroline Garcia's final coach, had warned her. "Muchova has such a complete game. She can do everything. At one point, she'll hit you with a slice, a return volley, a serve-volley... If she hadn't been hampered by injuries, she would be much higher in the rankings. It will be an interesting match." Indeed, for the last match of her career in Cincinnati, Caroline Garcia was treated to a great performance and the honors of the night match. She probably would have liked a different result, but after two months without competition, standing up to Muchova like she did commands a bit of respect.

Competitive as she is, she'll surely see the glass as half empty, that's obvious. But while many didn't think she was up to par, she showed up. And who knows what would have happened if she hadn't had to call the physio at the start of the second set to get treatment for a sore right thigh... "I don't really know what it is," Garcia confided after the match. "When I was about to serve, I felt something in my hamstring and adductor muscles. It's happened to me in the past, especially when I'm getting back into it after a long time without playing." There's no need to worry, however, ahead of the US Open, the final tournament of her career. "After a few days of rest and some treatment, it'll pass quickly. Anyway, when you haven't played much, you know things are going to happen. Even after the basic preparation at the start of the season, you play your first two matches and you're sore all over. The shoulder is a bit sulky, but that's how it is.

And despite this lack of competition and a body that reminds her why she decided to end her career, she almost tied with the No. 11 seed. "From the first match, there were positive things. I had time to organize myself, this was different. Muchova really offers something different. I had a little trouble adapting, but I was able to come back and perform better, faster. The level was good, I really wasn't far behind. For a third match in five months, it's rather positive in view of the US Open which remains the real objective." And seeing her fit and competitive when she is clearly short of competition, and even if we completely understand her decision to stop, we say to ourselves that there is perhaps something to be done, again... But she puts things in their place.

"I no longer have it in me to lead a life like this."

"When I made the decision to stop, it wasn't because of my level of tennis. There were still good matches and the level was there. But to be at the highest level, to always be competitive during seasons that are very long, it requires efforts that I no longer have the strength or the desire to make. I no longer have it in me to lead a life like this. The only thing I wanted was to be as prepared as possible for the US Open. And with these two matches, it's off to a good start."