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| Australian Open: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga shares heartfelt letter from ball girl | |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| It was the gesture at last year's Australian Open tennis tournament that made headlines around the world. | It was the gesture at last year's Australian Open tennis tournament that made headlines around the world. |
| During his second-round match, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga noticed a ball girl was fighting back tears after being struck by a ball. | During his second-round match, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga noticed a ball girl was fighting back tears after being struck by a ball. |
| The Frenchman stopped play to check on the girl before looping his arm through hers and escorting her off the court. | The Frenchman stopped play to check on the girl before looping his arm through hers and escorting her off the court. |
| Twelve months on, Tsonga has revealed the girl, Guiliana, sent him a heartfelt message of thanks. | Twelve months on, Tsonga has revealed the girl, Guiliana, sent him a heartfelt message of thanks. |
| "Dear Mr Jo-Wilfried Tsonga," the letter reads. | "Dear Mr Jo-Wilfried Tsonga," the letter reads. |
| "I wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you for helping me out on court during your round 2 match. I'm not sure if you remember me but I was the ball girl you escorted off court. | "I wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you for helping me out on court during your round 2 match. I'm not sure if you remember me but I was the ball girl you escorted off court. |
| "I would also like to take the opportunity to apologise for the times when you asked for the ball but I did not service it to you or acknowledge you. | "I would also like to take the opportunity to apologise for the times when you asked for the ball but I did not service it to you or acknowledge you. |
| "I had picked up a virus which I was unaware of and it caused me to become dizzy and lightheaded. This also affected my vision and hearing. | "I had picked up a virus which I was unaware of and it caused me to become dizzy and lightheaded. This also affected my vision and hearing. |
| "I apologise for not being able to perform my duties as a ball kid to the high standards that are expected. | "I apologise for not being able to perform my duties as a ball kid to the high standards that are expected. |
| "Thank you so much for the kindness that you showed me. I really appreciate that you were able to see that I needed some help and were kind enough to escort me off court." | "Thank you so much for the kindness that you showed me. I really appreciate that you were able to see that I needed some help and were kind enough to escort me off court." |
| The letter finishes by wishing Tsonga "all the best" for his remaining games, before signing off: "Giuliana, AO Ballkid no. 180." | The letter finishes by wishing Tsonga "all the best" for his remaining games, before signing off: "Giuliana, AO Ballkid no. 180." |
| Tsonga made the letter public in a tweet thanking Guiliana, which has been widely shared. | Tsonga made the letter public in a tweet thanking Guiliana, which has been widely shared. |
| The world number 12 will play 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka in the quarter-finals after beating Britain's Dan Evans on Sunday. |