He warned that it would be complicated, but Gaël Monfils did well against Jordan Thompson (6-7 [3], 6-1, 6-2). In fact, the Frenchman will have mostly done the diesel start before finishing with a bang. “Actually, it took me a long time to get used to the playing conditions. I had the impression that the ball wasn’t coming out of the racket,” he explained after his match ended late at night in Miami. when all the other players had already returned to their hotel.
There was also that scare when his right ankle locked up early in the match. But he immediately wanted to be reassuring. “It just got stuck, it didn’t turn. It’s on the top of the ankle, a little cold and you’ll be fine. Honestly, I didn’t have any pain and I moved well afterwards. » Indeed, the more the match progressed, the more he seemed to regain his feelings. “In the tie-break, I told the coach that I was going to put a little more, I felt it. But I was already down 0-3 and I had to stay calm. » The decisive game escaped him, but the match still changed.
A service found
Much more effective on serve (8 aces, 81% of points behind his first and 62% behind the second), he was pleased to see this shot once again become a basis of his game. “Because, honestly, we have come a long way. But we worked a lot on this one and it’s paying off. » Protected in his commitments, he was able to be more aggressive and complete the meeting without any additional fear.
“It’s a big challenge. It won’t be easy.”
Gaël Monfils on his future match against Carlos Alcaraz
Qualified for the third round of the Masters 1000 in Miami, he will face Carlos Alcaraz in a match that will make fans dream. He himself is quite impatient to meet the Spaniard for the second time in his career (Alcaraz won in Indian Wells in 2021, 7-5, 6-1). “It’s a big challenge. It won’t be easy because he can really let go of his punches and he will be hard to overwhelm. Plus, he won easily by playing well. But it makes you want it. We’ll have to get into the match better, that’s for sure. Now we will prepare well. It will probably be at night, which is not ideal. But there will surely be a nice atmosphere. I hope to have a good match and play my card to the maximum. »
2024-03-24 06:39:05
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