World No.57 Mpetshi Perricard retires mid-match after hitting his own eye in freak accident

The moment Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard hit his own eye with a ball. (Getty/Alexandre Dimou)

A surreal retirement occurred in France as Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard couldn't continue due to a freak eye injury.

The world No.57 was down a break late in the first set when he approached the net to hit a routine volley, only for the ball to hit his left eye.

At that stage, he was trailing 3-5 when the incident occurred, and there were fears he wouldn't be able to continue, as he fell to his knees in clear discomfort.

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Cameras showed Mpetshi Perricard's red eye during a medical timeout.

He played on for one more point, but conceded defeat against French compatriot Arthur Gea at the Montpellier 250 first round.

"It's never easy to see a friend (injured). It's never easy to see this," Gea said.

After reaching back-to-back quarter-finals in Auckland and Brisbane, Mpetshi Perricard has suffered first round exits in Melbourne and Montpellier.

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