Florence: Gasquet powerless against Nakashima

Aurélie SACCHELLI, Media365, published on Tuesday, October 11, 2022 at 9:30 p.m.

Richard Gasquet lost in the first round of the Florence tournament to the No. 8 seed, Brandon Nakashima.

Since his defeat in the third round of the US Open against Rafael Nafal, Richard Gasquet has been struggling. The French player certainly beat two almost unknown players in the Davis Cup (the Australian Kubler and the Belgian Geerts), but he was then eliminated from the start in Metz, then in the quarter-finals of the Challenger d’Orléans, then from his entry into the running at the Challenger of Mouilleron-le-Captif. This week, the 83rd in the world decided to line up in Florence, in one of the many tournaments created following the renunciation of China to organize tournaments during the coronavirus pandemic, and he lost in the first round. Opposed to the American Brandon Nakashima, 46th in the world, for the first of his career, the 36-year-old player did not exist and lost 6-2, 6-2 in 1h04. The Californian, who won his first tournament on the side of San Diego (his hometown) last month, served 12 aces, 69% of first serves, and did not have the slightest break point to defend. The two sets went the same way: Gasquet held until 2-2, then lost four games in a row. It is therefore Nakashima who will face Celikbilek for a place in the quarterfinals, while the Frenchman will return to the courts during the Brest Challenger in two weeks.

Bublik for Moutet

The other Frenchman in contention in Tuscany, Corentin Moutet, difficult winner of his first round on Monday evening, knows his opponent in the second. It is the 43rd in the world Alexander Bublik, seeded n°7, who defeated Cristian Garin with a score of 7-5, 6-2 in 1h27 by serving 20 aces and without being broken.