It is one of the favorite Majors of French players, just like Roland-Garros. The Wimbledon Grand Slam tournament, originally scheduled for June 29 to July 12, was canceled by the organization due to the Covid-19. Nicolas Mahut, double winner of Wimbledon and big fan of the London turf accuses the blow.
"When I do my planning for the season, it's the event I don't want to miss, it's heartbreaking not to be able to fight it. It's as if there were no Tour de France in cycling ", lamented the Angevin on Europe 1.
>> Find all the major debates of Europe 1 Sport in replay and podcast here
Richard Gasquet: "What I miss most is to live"
Nicolas Mahut, who has the record for the longest match in the history of professional tennis precisely at Wimbledon (11 hours and 5 minutes of play, match lost against the American Isner, editor's note ) must deal with this cancellation. "The priority is elsewhere", puts the 38-year-old tennis player into perspective.
"It's completely normal, I don't have all the ins and outs, but it's too fair to imagine myself playing in three months. This is a completely new case, it's weird for everyone" , for his part reacted to the microphone of Europe 1 Richard Gasquet, twice semi-finalist at "Wim". But the Biterrois wants to be a philosopher: "Everyone misses it. Roland-Garros, Wimbledon, these are exceptional tournaments, but what I miss is to live. These cancellations seem ridiculous compared to what it's happening right now. "
>> READ ALSO: Coronavirus: Roland-Garros postponed to the end of September
White season or resumption in the fall, the players in blur
For the moment, it is impossible to know when the tennis activity can resume. "Stopping the circuit, you have to live with it, it's difficult, all tennis players are unemployed", recalls Nicolas Mahut on Europe 1. "The recovery is supposed to be on July 13, ATP must surely work for a recovery in August, but nothing is certain. " For Richard Gasquet, "maybe there will also be a white season, we will have to accept it".
Nicolas Mahut, he wants to be more optimistic: "I am in favor, if we have a game window, that we use it to the fullest. If it is September, it will be September. We must remain optimistic and play as soon as the sanitary conditions will be met. " In any case this situation is not the best for physical and mental preparation. "When you're a tennis player, you can never stop too much," says Richard Gasquet. "So, yes, it's like we have a preseason, but now it seems complicated to play in three months." If tennis does resume this summer…