By Erik Gudris | @atntennis | Monday, March 24, 2025
Photo credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty
Call it "Le Comeback!"
In a surprise announcement, or perhaps not giving her mercurial personality, Alizé Cornet revealed that she will return to tennis after retiring last year.
Cornet, 35, announced that she plans to compete at the upcoming Open Capfinances Rouen Métropole event in France.
It would be her first tournament back since she officially retired at last year's Roland Garros back in May 2024 after a first-round loss to China's Qinwen Zheng.
"You thought you were rid of me, that is not quite the case yet! So see you soon to get excited again all together," Cornet said in a statement on the tournament's website.
"I am extremely happy to be back playing on the courts of the Open Capfinances Rouen Métropole for what is for me a very exciting return to competition," Cornet said. "When I started training again two months ago, I immediately had this goal in mind, to be ready for Rouen and I thank Charles (Roche) for giving me this chance to be able to enter the main draw directly."
The tournament extended Cornet a main draw wild card into the WTA 250 event taking place in mid-April.
"What a pleasure to see Alizé, one of the greatest champions of French tennis, back on the courts of the Open Capfinances Rouen Métropole in a few weeks at the Kindarena. An outstanding competitor, there's no doubt she'll give her all on the court as usual," said Charles Roche, tournament director.
Cornet reached a career-high ranking of World No. 11 in 2009, won six WTA singles titles, and also holds a historic record of playing in 69 consecutive Grand Slam tournaments, a streak that runs from the 2007 Australian Open to Roland Garros in 2024.