Cédric Chasseur / Photo credits: JEAN CATUFFE / DPPI VIA AFP
Gaël Monfils did not win this Monday for his entry into the running at the Masters 1000 at Paris-Bercy. Of the eight French people present in the first round, only Ugo Humbert emerges victorious and will compete in the second round.
At the Masters 1000 in Paris, we are not very far from industrial disaster for French players. Of the eight French players entered in the first round, Ugo Humbert (26th) is the only one to have qualified for the second round, an unprecedented poor performance in the history of the Parisian tournament.
Ugo Humbert – Alexander Zverev
In the history of Bercy, the French clan had never experienced such a rout. Exit Arthur Fils, absent from the debates against the German Daniel Altmaier. Exit also Gaël Monfils (79th player in the world) fought but ended up losing despite having a match point against the Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo. The only survivor, French number one Ugo Humbert, defeated the American Marcos Giron in two sets. Rather philosophical, the Frenchman takes his role as standard bearer of French tennis with a certain detachment.
“No, it doesn’t change anything. I’ve been doing my thing for a year and that’s already concentrating on what I have to do and I find that I do it rather well. So there’s no pressure, I’m just trying to do my best. I’m almost at my best ranking. I’ve played well these last few weeks. It’s one of the tournaments that I like the most in France. The rest is a bonus for me so I’m very relaxed”, he confides at the microphone of Europe 1.
Ugo Humbert, who will have a lot to do this Wednesday since he will meet the German Alexander Zverev, ninth player in the world, on his way.