ATP Montpellier – Monfils in search of consistency: “I will be 36 this year, I have another step back”

He was still suffering a bit from jet lag when he appeared before the press on Tuesday. But Gaël Monfils kept his commitment. Exempted from the first round and seeded number 3 in Montpellier, the Parisian by birth enters the running Thursday against the Swede Mikael Ymer, who defeated another Frenchman in the 1st round in the person of Corentin Moutet. Crowned three times in the Hérault, he will defend the 250 points of his title there in 2020, but without real pressure given his good start to the Australian season. Or in any case without the threat of a potential heavy fall in the standings, because the number 1 tricolor is demanding vis-à-vis itself.

“I didn’t think I was being hard on myself, I was just telling the truth. In my career, I have never managed to play my best level in the quarter or half of a Grand Slam. You can always find excuses, especially when you lose to extremely strong guys like Nadal, Federer or Djokovic. But I don’t see that as an excuse, it’s often poor management on my part on certain choices. I don’t take my opportunities well“, underlined La Monf ‘.

Recalling that out of ten quarter-finals reached in Majors, he had only reached the semi-finals twice (Roland-Garros 2008 and US Open 2016), he did not spare himself. But Monfils did not indulge in this self-criticism to feel sorry for himself, quite the contrary. He did it because he is convinced that by looking at things in the face, he will one day be able to change the course. Make no mistake about it: he is proud of his Australian career, but does not want to be satisfied with it as long as he can play at this level.

Look yourself in the face and give yourself the means to achieve your ambitions

“It’s not easy to make the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam. And when you have the opportunity to go further, it’s not easy to seize it. And when I say that about myself, it’s because I have ambition and the desire to believe it. It does not question the fact that it is good to put yourself in this position already. And I want to get back to it so I can look higher“, he insisted again.

And to do this, he will have to find the regularity that has often been his cute sin. Be efficient week after week and give yourself a high enough average level to afford other Grand Slam opportunities. This notably requires good management of the smallest tournaments such as that of Montpellier. After his only previous quarter-final at the Australian Open in 2016, he lost as soon as he entered the competition in the Hérault against Edouard Roger-Vasselin.

Despite post-Australian Open fatigue, Monfils is already back to work

A similar counter-performance on Thursday cannot be ruled out, given Monfils’ state of fatigue. But he put all the assets on his side by inflicting a training session of an hour and a half upon his arrival on Monday, then two more on Tuesday (thus three additional hours). By choosing to work with Günter Bresnik last year, Monfils had sent a clear message: no question of arranging a quiet end to his career, but of exploiting his tennis potential to the end. Monfils may still like to put on a show, but he has changed a lot since his debut on the circuit.

“I’m going to be 36 this year, so I don’t have the same desires or the same expectations. I got married, I’m super happy. I’ve always said that the family is something very important to me, so personally I’m fulfilled. People label me a 20-year-old kid, but I’m 36 and I want something more. When I see Jo (Tsonga) and Gilles (Simon) with children, we are no longer the same. We have a different outlook on life. These last two years have been difficult for everyone, and all of this makes me have another setback“, he said again.

In the Hérault, Monfils will certainly be keen to share with the French public his joy and his level found. “Having an audience is very important to me. When there isn’t, it’s sadder, different and harder. It’s gonna be a great party.” If he could rain winning shots on the Patrice Dominguez court and lift the trophy a fourth time this weekend, she would certainly be all the more beautiful.