New York (AFP)

Caroline Garcia regained her physique, her tennis, her confidence and the joy of winning, with a capital performance on Wednesday in the second round of the US Open against the No. 1 seed Karolina Pliskova, who did nothing but whet your appetite.

In the heavy context of the health bubble of Flushing Meadows, the radiant smile which once again illuminated, after months of grimaceous soup, the face of the Lyonnaise, was refreshing.

"I felt great on the court, full of energy, I knew I could give him problems (...) It's part of the very, very good victories. It's really an important game that really gives And above all, I really enjoyed playing in the times when things were going well and in the toughest times, ”she said.

"It didn't play out much, but mentally I was there and I believed in my chances," added the 50th in the world.

But there is no question of being intoxicated by this formidable 6-1, 7-6 (7/2) victory against the 3rd world, his first success against a member of the World Top 10 in a Grand Slam match.

"A victory, that always makes you happy. There, a little more because it is against a top player, but when I won my first match on Monday, I was also super happy," she said.

- "Slow and soft" -

It must be said that, physically unable to set up her game for months, Garcia has had a series of disappointments which made her come down from her 4th place in the WTA ranking reached in 2018.

During this period, she still participated in the victory of France in the Fed Cup in 2019. If, in the final in Australia, she was swept away in her single against Ashleigh Barty (6-0, 6-0), before to team up with Kristina Mladenovic to win the decisive double she had carried the team in previous rounds.

But, "at the end of last year I had become slow and limp," she said in January after her elimination in the second round of the Australian Open, explaining evasively that the work on her physique was " In progress".

Back from Melbourne, she went to put her bags at the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca where she was confined.

During the weeks without tennis, she went up and down stairs ... And resumed her tennis preparation as soon as the resumption of play was authorized.

- "The kiff" of the plane -

So Wednesday, she was savoring.

"I also liked the way I played because it means that the work does not always pay off right away, but that you have to keep believing in it. It gave me confidence that if I keep working hard, believing in myself, things can turn in the right direction for me and lead to my dream of winning a tournament. "

She has won seven titles in her career, the last in 2019 at Nottingham, on hard.

A click seems to have occurred in his head and, now, his opponents know that the Caroline Garcia of 2018 could well be on the way back to the highest level.

"There are girls who play good tennis and Garcia is one of them," Pliskova said after her loss.

The next who will feel the explosive ball of the French will be the American Jennifer Brady (41st), Friday in the 3rd round.

Garcia has never reached the round of 16 of the US Open, and his motivation will therefore be even greater.

With the physique, the tennis and the joy of victory came Garcia's celebratory “kiff”: flying on the court.

How far will it fly?

© 2020 AFP