Stan Wawrinka retired from tennis after losing to Jiri Lehecka in the first round of the 2026 Swiss Indoors.
The three-time Grand Slam champion played the final match of his career in front of his home crowd in Basel, losing to Lehecka, a man 17 years younger than him, 4-7, 6-7.
American WTA stars Jessica Pegula and Madison Keys have now shared their thoughts on Wawrinka’s retirement, praising the 41-year-old for all he achieved competing in one of the strongest eras of men’s tennis.
Jessica Pegula says Stan Wawrinka doesn’t get enough credit
“I think he was very underrated. Extremely underrated; he won his Slams beating the ‘Big Three’. He does not get enough credit in my opinion,” said Pegula on the ‘Player’s Box Podcast‘.
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“I would say it’s a tough era for him. He won three Slams when you have three of the greatest of all time in the same conversation. Three Slams is crazy! It’s so impressive, but then it’s like, yeah, but is it 27?” added Keys.
Stan Wawrinka’s Grand Slam wins
- 2014 Australian Open
- 2015 French Open
- 2016 US Open
“It is like it’s almost overshadowed because he wasn’t one of them, so in that era it was a big deal, but then the other three won the next 15, so nobody talks about him,” said Pegula.
“It was also that he was Swiss and then he had Roger Federer,” said Brady, the 2021 Australian Open finalist and member of the Player’s Box Podcast.
Wawrinka won three Grand Slams during the era of the ‘Big Three’ or the ‘Big Four’, competing against Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Andy Murray. Wawrinka defeated Nadal to win his first Grand Slam in Melbourne, before beating Djokovic in Paris and New York.
He remains one of just eight players to have won multiple Grand Slam titles since 2003 (the year Roger Federer won his first major), alongside the aforementioned ‘Big Four’, Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Alexander Zverev.
Multiple Grand Slam winners since 2003
| Rank | Player | Grand Slams |
| 1 | Novak Djokovic | 24 |
| 2 | Rafael Nadal | 22 |
| 3 | Roger Federer | 20 |
| 4 | Carlos Alcaraz | 7 |
| 5 | Jannik Sinner | 5 |
| T-6 | Andy Murray | 3 |
| T-6 | Stan Wawrinka | 3 |
| 8 | Alexander Zverev | 2 |
Pegula and Keys continued to praise Wawrinka as they commented on his backhand and the weight of his racket that led him to Grand Slam glory.
“He still is good. But he was so good! His backhand is a joke! And he was battling this year,” said Pegula.
“Have you seen this racket? It is so heavy!” Keys interjected.
“I wonder if that’s why he hit through it so much, but he was a big guy. He is a little stocky. He was built thicker for a tennis player,” said Pegula.
How good was Stan Wawrinka this year?
Wawrinka left it all out on the court during his final year as a professional. The Swiss veteran played ATP Tour and Challenger Tour events and is currently ranked 152nd in the world.
He didn’t win any titles, but he won 10 matches. In fact, Wawrinka defeated four top-100 opponents this season, beating (ATP #92) Laslo Djere at the Australian Open, (ATP #80) Hamad Medjedovic in Montpellier, (ATP #67) Martin Landaluce in Lyon, and (ATP #27) Arthur Rinderknech at the United Cup.
Wawrinka battled till the very end and can be proud of his efforts in 2026. The former world number three can now look forward to a well-earned rest before embarking on whatever is next.
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