Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has been a fixture inside the world top 15 since 2011, with a good portion of that time period as one of the 10 best players. However, injuries have hampered the Frenchman since last fall, and his play has produced uneven results. Tsonga has returned to North America, where he had hoped to defend his Rogers Cup title and apply damage control to his fallen ranking with the upcoming U. S. Open only weeks away. And while he fell short in Canada, losing to eventual champion Andy Murray in the quarterfinals, his big picture is in focus during the days ahead.

Tsonga was near his peak when he won the Rogers Cup in 2014 and entered Flushing Meadows with some momentum, but he lost to Murray in the round of 16 there as well. Later, an injured arm surfaced, but the loyal Frenchman was determined to compete in the Davis Cup final last November. After aggravating the injury, he withdrew from the competition and was ultimately forced to bypass the Australian Open early this season.

In retrospect, Tsonga would question his decision to continue playing after the U. S. Open last year. “Obviously, I should never have played the [Davis Cup] final, like I should never have played [Paris] Bercy, like I should have not played at all from the month of September to have time to recover from this injury and be fighting fit for the 2015 season,” he said.

Tsonga did not return to action until March and has played just eight tournaments in 2015. He showed signs of a return to form with a semifinal run at Roland Garros in the spring, but an abdominal strain set him back once more. He would compete at Wimbledon and Davis Cup immediately afterward but was clearly not in peak form during those events.

Now, with his good health returning and the rust fading, Tsonga has his sights set on success at the US Open and hopes a return to the hard courts will finally pay dividends during a difficult season. With stops in Cincinnati and Winston-Salem ahead, the Frenchman is attempting to make up for lost time.

However, there will be obstacles to overcome in order to achieve his goals in New York. To surpass his best result at his least successful major (a quarterfinal in 2011), he must do so with a lower seed than accustomed. Tsonga has dropped to world No. 24, his lowest ranking since 2008. And while this ranking should improve after results at the next two U. S. Open Series tournaments, he will face a much more difficult path in New York than last season.

But the veteran does not appear to be affected by pressure or the weight of his injury-plagued season while on the court. He has emphasized having fun when speaking to young players and appears to be taking his own advice. In his loss to Murray in Montreal, Tsonga showed his playful side, displaying light moments with fans during the match. And in a tense moment, he jokingly sat while a Murray challenge overturned what would have been a game point.

He has shown glimpses of his peak game recently as well. Still armed with an assortment of weapons, Tsonga struck big serves and powerful groundstrokes, and he showed good mobility during his return to the hard courts in Montreal.

It was just a year ago when he defeated four top-10 players in order during the U. S. Open Series. Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Grigor Dimitrov, and Roger Federer can all attest to the danger that Tsonga presents when in top form. This week, he returns to Ohio and will attempt to further pursue his peak level once more. As he seeks to regain his scale of play from last summer prior to injury, he certainly becomes a competitor who could disrupt a top seed’s path during the fortnight in New York.