Gasquet still hopes to finish this season in the Top 50. -

Anatoliy Medved / SIPA

The step was too high for Richie… Uncertain until the very beginning of the tournament, Gasquet finally made a success of his entry in the running by taking out Fritz in the first round, but the rest turned out to be too complicated.

Opposed to world n ° 9 Diego Schwartzman in the second round of the Masters 1000 in Paris, the Frenchman logically lost in two sets (7-5, 6-3) and just under an hour and a half on Wednesday.

Schwartzman (9th), recent semi-finalist at Roland-Garros and for the moment the best placed to pocket the last available ticket for the end-of-season Masters in London, will face Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich (63rd) in the round of 16 Thursday.

It's over for Gasquet!

❌ The French suffered the hard law of Diego Schwartzman 🇦🇷 at Bercy and lost 7-5, 6-3!



👉 Follow the #RolexParisMasters live on Eurosport and https://t.co/uVTiilaGOm #HomeOfTennis pic.twitter.com/qyKCZQv83k

- Eurosport France (@Eurosport_FR) November 4, 2020

In Paris, Gasquet ended a four-game losing streak and obtained his first victory in two months by crossing the first round at the expense of American Taylor Fritz on Monday.

If he can directly integrate the main draw, he still intends to play next week in Sofia, the last tournament in the 2020 calendar, except the Masters reserved for the best eight players of the season.

"I didn't expect to play as many seasons as that"

Asked about his record for the season, Gasquet admitted that it had been hot to keep pace.

“I lost against great players.

Since the US Open, I lost against Top 10, Top 20. I try my best, I do not play badly, but physically I have to raise the level when there are high intensity matches against people of this ilk.

You have to be able to change things, ”he explained.

Unlike others, the native of Béziers confided that the end of the competition did not hurt him: “I was injured in March.

April I had some success.

Admittedly, it didn't hurt me that much not being able to play March / April.

Maybe I wouldn't have finished in the top 50.

I know I have the level anyway.

"

If he does not yet know until when he will push the machine - "I hope to play a few more years but I do not know if it will be possible" - the 56th player in the world said he was "proud to be still there at 34 ”.

“I didn't expect to play as many seasons as that.

I started, I was in the 100 in 2003-2004, I did not imagine myself playing tennis in 2020. I am happy to be still here, to be competitive, to play these big tournaments.

I'm pretty proud of it.

"

Sport

Masters 1000 de Paris-Bercy: "In good shape, I am capable of beating a lot of people", Gasquet returned to victory

Sport

Bercy Tournament: "I am dead ..." Humbert achieves the feat of his career against Tsitsipas

  • Masters 1000 Paris-Bercy

  • Tennis

  • Sport

  • Richard Gasquet