This is an understatement to say that he had been waiting for her for a while.
Gaël Monfils won his first match on the circuit for 446 days on Tuesday, beating Brazilian lucky loser Thiago Seyboth Wild in the first round of the Lyon tournament (7/5 6/4).
His last victory dates back to the Dubai tournament in February 2020, when he dismissed Richard Gasquet in the quarter-finals.
Since then, he had lost entry to the eight tournaments he had registered for.
End of the crisis of confidence?
Asked about this scarcity after the meeting, the French did not want to add more. “I don't necessarily like to talk about this,” he replied. I've had a harder time, I'm working, and I don't want to think about it. I put myself in my tournament, actually. You arrive in a press conference and they tell you that it's been fifteen months since you won ... It's not bad. But OK. Here, I won my first round in Lyon. I build my consistency to arrive at the top in the appointments that I have set for myself. "
Between injuries and blues, Monfils seemed lately at the bottom of the hole.
At the Australian Open for example, he could not hold back a few tears at a press conference.
“I play badly, I can't serve, I can't make a forehand anymore, I make mistakes.
I am six meters behind, I put tarpaulins.
No trust.
I am honest to tell you that I have no confidence.
I don't feel good, it shows.
I don't need to say more, I can feel it, ”he said.
A complicated period that he may be closing.
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Gaël Monfils
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