Thanasi Kokkinakis is back at Roland Garros, and the 30-year-old Australian says his right arm is still far from normal as he prepares to face Frenchman Terence Atmane in the opening round on Monday.
Kokkinakis pulled out of the Australian Open in January after reinjuring the shoulder that had once needed ground-breaking surgery to save his career, and the return to Grand Slam tennis is a test of how much more his body will allow. He said his protected ranking could open the door to the next four Grand Slams, but he is taking the longer view on what comes after this one.
The weight of that return is clear in the way Kokkinakis talks about it. He said there were many months when his recovery was not normal, adding that he could not lift his arm out to the side for a while and had to get a mate to floss his armpit after showering because he could not do it himself. He said he had spent periods wondering whether he would even be able to get back on a tennis court and compete at full capacity, but that he has given himself credit for making it this far.
Kokkinakis also said the operation he underwent was not normal, and that for a long stretch his right arm was not as functional as that of the average person. He described the rehabilitation as a 12-month odyssey and said he has learned to accept a new normal. There are still limits, but there is also momentum: he played his first couple of matches since January in Croatia earlier this month, a sign that the shoulder is holding up well enough to let him keep going.
That does not remove the tension around what comes next. Kokkinakis said he expects to make a decision after the next 12 months about whether his arm will allow him to keep playing, a deadline that hangs over a comeback built on pain, patience and uncertainty. He said he keeps pushing because he would regret not giving it a crack if he walked away too soon, and because, for now, he still sees a chance to keep extending his career.
Roland Garros has been one of the few places where Kokkinakis has consistently felt that urge to continue. He said the atmosphere and energy on court in Paris are something he cannot replicate once tennis is over, and he has already made some of his sharpest memories there. He recalled beating Stan Wawrinka in a crazy match in 2023 and said he played three five-set matches at the tournament in 2024, proof that the clay in Paris has already given him a few of his most punishing and memorable days.
The broader context is hard to miss. Kokkinakis was doing television commentary around this time last year, and since then his return has been shaped by another surgery, another layoff and another attempt to build his body back toward tour level. If the shoulder keeps responding, he may still have several majors ahead of him. If it does not, Monday’s first-round match could be another stop in a career that has already asked him to absorb more than most players ever do.
