An additional figure to demonstrate the complicated period that French tennis is currently going through. This Monday, Gaël Monfils, package at Roland-Garros and current 23rd player in the world, is the only tricolor representative in the Top 50, for the first time in 17 years. This unprecedented situation since February 13, 2005 is explained by the biggest fall of the week in the ATP ranking, that of Ugo Humbert, from 50th to 103rd place.
Eliminated in the second round in Halle by Hurkacz, Humbert lost half of the 1,000 points he had earned last year by winning the final of the German tournament. Among the seven other French members of the Top 100, Benjamin Bonzi, 56th (-4), and Arthur Rinderknech, 61st (-6), regress, while Hugo Gaston, 65th (+ 2), and Richard Gasquet, 69th (+ 4 ), regained a few places. But it’s far, far too far in the rankings.
In 2005, the French number one was called Sébastien Grosjean and was in 28th place. Mickaël Llodra and Fabrice Santoro were ranked 51st and 52nd respectively in the ATP rankings. However, only three years later, France placed three players in the top 15 at the end of the 2008 season with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (6th), Gilles Simon (7th) and Gaël Monfils (14th).
The generational gap that has plagued French tennis for several years now has been confirmed again this year at Roland-Garros where no Frenchman has crossed the threshold of the sixteenth finals, a stage of the competition fatal to Hugo Gaston and Gilles Simon. Among girls, the picture is no better. To date, only Alizé Cornet is in the top 50 (44th). Caroline Garcia, Diane Parry, Océane Dodin and Clara Burel are making their way into the top 100.
At the top of the men’s hierarchy, Medvedev, despite his defeat on Sunday in the final of the Halle tournament, remains N.1. Alexander Zverev retains his place as runner-up ahead of Novak Djokovic and the Spaniard Rafael Nadal, who will soon become a father and whose very painful foot at Roland Garros is much better.
