Biot (France) (AFP)

Whether the format continues or not, Alexei Popyrin will forever be the first winner of a tennis match with Patrick Mouratoglou sauce, Sunday for the inauguration of the Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) organized by the French coach in the Nice hinterland.

The Australian (103rd player in the world), won three of the four quarters of his duel against the French Elliot Benchetrit (208th).

Played behind closed doors in Biot, the UTS aims to capture a young audience, tennis expert or not. The formula chosen by Mouratoglou capitalizes on the current ubiquity of screens, using all the codes of e-sport and short formats disseminated on internet platforms.

The players used their bonus cards well, a little less their freedom of expression, yet voluntarily less constrained than during the official tournaments - even if Benchetrit threw his racket on the ground once. For their part, the virtual spectators were treated to a sometimes extravagant visual and sound design, in particular on the part of commentators who became animators, in a match of moderate intensity.

The UTS brings together 10 players chosen by the organization for their talent, their personality, their style of play and their availability. They compete over 5 consecutive weekends at the rate of 10 games per weekend, with a championship phase then a knockout table.

The rain had prevented the start of the competition on Saturday, so that this first weekend of UTS will be played on Sunday and Monday.

Mouratoglou hopes that his event will become a "2nd league" which will be played in parallel with the professional ATP circuit, with which he says he does not want to compete.

© 2020 AFP