On the night he could have said goodbye, David Goffin refused to leave. The Belgian wildcard was a set down, then 3-0 down in the decider, in front of a home crowd ready to applaud him off for the last time. He fought back to beat Swiss lucky loser Remy Bertola 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 at the Brussels ATP 250 on Wednesday evening, then fell to his knees on match point. His retirement can wait: the 35-year-old is into the last 16 of the final tournament of his career.

Goffin is 35 and ranked No. 657. This was his first main-draw win of the season, after two exits in the second round of qualifying.

“I’m going to have to cancel the party I had booked,” Goffin joked on court. “It was both the most beautiful and the hardest opening match I’ve ever had. I was very nervous, and the most important thing was the support of the crowd from the first point to the last. Finishing the match on a winner was huge.”

The last tournament for Belgium’s most successful man

“Everything was perfect, I couldn’t have hoped for better,” Goffin said. “Thank you to everyone, my friends, my family, my teammates, my wife and my daughter. It means a lot to me to have lived this moment. And we go again tomorrow! It’s not over, there are only four matches left. What’s that in a career?”

Goffin is the highest-ranked Belgian man in the history of the ATP rankings, peaking at No. 7 in 2017. That season he beat Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer on his way to the final of the ATP Finals. He also holds the Open Era records for most wins and most titles among Belgian men, with six titles. This is his eighth appearance at the European Open, which ties him with Richard Gasquet for the most in the event’s history. His best result here is a run to the semifinals in 2017.

Bertola is ranked No. 219 and lost in the final round of qualifying before getting into the main draw as a lucky loser. He was playing only his second ATP Tour main-draw match.

Goffin will face Alex Michelsen of the United States, the No. 5 seed, in the round of 16.