Gut-Wrenching Defeat: Richard Gasquet Falls in First Round of Rolex Paris Masters

So infuriating. At 37, Richard Gasquet almost scored one of the greatest victories of his career at the Rolex Paris Masters but the Frenchman ended up falling in the first round of this 2023 edition against the No. 12 seed Tommy Paul (0-6, 6-2 7-6 (6)) at the end of a match full of twists and turns.

While the American led 5-2 service to follow and two breaks ahead in the third and final set, the Frenchman, fantastically resilient, turned the situation around with backhands and crazy points to offer himself a crazy climb into a white-hot Bercy. But the Biterrois cracked in the tie-break, despite three match points, and let the American escape to the 2nd round where he will face Botic van de Zandschulp, who defeated Adrian Mannarino this Monday.

A stratospheric start for Gasquet

There will be very big regrets. Returning to perfection in this first round, Richard Gasquet played during a one-sided first set, to the great joy of the Parisian public, delighted with the incredible level of play of the Frenchman (28 winning shots and 7 unforced errors on the total). But, despite a huge atmosphere in favor of the Frenchman, Tommy Paul could not decently let himself be crushed like this and ended up regaining his footwork, his vision and his hand.

His defense then began to pose insoluble problems for the overwhelmed Gasquet. The No. 12 seed, who had to wait until the start of the second round to score a game, did so by breaking the Habs, completely reversing the course of the match. From then on, there was only the American on the court and the Frenchman was subjected to the law of the semi-finalist of the 2023 Australian Open.

Richard Gasquet during the Rolex Paris Masters 2023

Credit: Getty Images

Du Gasquet 2007 at the end of the meeting

But Gasquet never gave up in the lead and it only took one game without Paul, at 5-2 in the third set, to find a gala Gasquet. While the American was serving for the match, the Frenchman suddenly regained his composure to reverse the trend again. Backhand along the line, winning volley while diving, passing at the end of the course… At times we thought we were back in 2007, at the peak of tennis in Biterrois.

Trailing 5-2 in the last round, Paul service to follow, the Frenchman suddenly found some relaxation to reignite the suspense. In a Bercy which was just asking for that to ignite, the Biterrois first broke before offering himself one of the points of the day on a melting court and breaking a second time to get back together.

Untouchable, Gasquet then seemed to be heading towards the 2nd round, as Paul was unable to respond to the accelerations of the Habs, who had three consecutive match points in the tie-break, at 6-3. Unfortunately, he would no longer score a single point, wasting the last opportunity with a double fault.

And it was on a final unforced error, where he was so strong throughout the match, that the Frenchman ended up letting a match slip away which no longer seemed to be able to escape him. A logical defeat on paper, logical over the whole match, but terribly frustrating. The French will therefore not have won a single match at Bercy this Monday.

Pouille admiring Gasquet: “If it was his last match here, he’s going out the front door!”

2023-10-30 23:00:00
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