Paris (AFP)

The 2020 edition of Roland-Garros, postponed to the beginning of autumn due to the Covid-19 and with only 1,000 spectators, "is not going to be the same tournament as the one I dreamed of", Frenchman Gaël said on Friday. Monfils, seeded N.8, two days before the first round.

Made "a little sad" by the weather, the absence of a large audience and his family, the original Parisian intends to approach his favorite tournament "cool" and "detached", after a failed preparation.

Q: Your return to competition was complicated (eliminated from the start in Rome and then Hamburg), you didn't hide it.

Does coming back to Paris help you feel better?

A: "I just arrived yesterday (Thursday) actually I can't say much. But in the end I think it's pretty normal not to feel like before the circuit was interrupted. , which lasted several months. I thought I would feel better, and faster. And the return to Paris ... honestly, I'm a little sad. The stadium is empty, the weather is not very pleasant so far. The conditions are not optimal at the moment. So, it will have to come from me. It is going to be complicated, of course. It is not an easy situation, it is not a hopeless situation. or two days of training (before his first round against the Kazakh Alexander Bublik, Editor's note), I'll deal with it, hoping to feel better and better. We can work, we can train, from time to time, it doesn't want, at least it doesn't want right away, because training necessarily pays off at some point. I'm going to take this game much more cool, detached, because I wanted to re

come too quickly.

After a long stop, it takes almost that long to get back to 100%. "

Q: Not being able to leave the hotel, health protocol requires, undermines your morale even more?

A: "Going for a walk isn't what bothers me the most. What bothers me the most is not being able to see my family. Normally, every Roland-Garros is a bit of a point. of fall at the end of May-beginning of June, for my friends too. But my family, it's been a long time since I saw them. That's what saddens me the most. "

Q: How much can conditions affect your motivations?

A: "The word is going to be harsh but ... (He searches for his words) It's not going to be the same tournament I played before, it's not going to be the same tournament I dreamed of. is going to be a different tournament in my favorite place. We are not going to say that this is not THE tournament you dreamed of, with a crazy atmosphere, supporters, magic what. No, this is going to be your favorite tournament. 'a different way. "

Interview by videoconference

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