"I think I can go higher," says Quentin Halys

• On Monday,

  20 Minutes

  gives the floor to a sports actor or actress who is making the news.

  This week, place to Quentin Halys.

• The 26-year-old French tennis player challenges the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, 4th player in the world, this Monday in the first round of the Australian Open.

• A gifted former junior, the Ile-de-France player is now a fulfilled player, after having gone through complicated seasons.

Quentin Halys surely did not believe so well when he was questioned just before the start of the ATP 250 tournament in Auckland, of which he reached the quarter-finals last Thursday.

“The Australian Open may suit me well, but we are always dependent on the draw”, had launched the 26-year-old Frenchman, who went from young prodigy to solid player in the Top 100, after a few more delicate years.

This tall server of 1.91 m will have to wrestle with the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, 4th in the world, in the first round, this Monday morning in Melbourne.

But the 64th at the ATP (best ranking of his career) also specified: “I feel capable of beating a lot of players and I can't wait for it to start.

“And also looking forward to confirming his beautiful form.

After beating you with difficulty (7-6, 7-6) at the Adelaide tournament on January 5, Novak Djokovic declared that you had "played like a Top 10".

What inspires you?

Not much.

I was obviously disappointed because I lost.

But I am aware of having played a good game.

It's not my average level of play, I'm aware of that too.

There are defeats that are less hard to swallow than others.

You also said just after the match that you didn't have much to regret.

Was there more of a gap between you than the score indicates?

I'm not far off, but on the other hand I've never been in a position to win.

I remain happy with my match because that day, I think I could have beaten a lot of players.

However, I didn't.

If I ever had to play it again, it has to serve me to succeed in winning.

In what state of mind do you approach the Australian Open?

I'm excited, it's a tournament that I really like, where I play quite well.

The first time was in juniors, I had reached the final in doubles (with Johan-Sébastien Tatlot, in 2014).

It was also in Melbourne that I won my first match in the final draw of a Grand Slam (against the Croatian Ivan Dodig, in 2016).

I have already come out of qualifying twice.

I have many good memories there.

Of your six singles titles, you won three in 2022 [as a challenger].

Last year you also played four other finals and made it into the Top 100. What happened?

I won many, many games at the start of the year.

I built up a lot of confidence, which I managed to keep all season.

I also felt very good physically all year.

I haven't revolutionized my tennis.

But there was more consistency in my matches, more regularity.

I'm glad I ended up with this because it's really what I've been looking for for quite a few years.

This classification is also a sesame for the final table of the Grand Slam tournaments, a sporting but also financial guarantee.

Does this change everything for you?

It changes a lot of things, but it's only a step.

I hope to stay as long as possible in this ranking.

Financially and even in terms of motivation, we know why we are in the field.

It boosts motivation.

In

You have to focus less on the rankings and try to be more regular.

Play all the matches thoroughly, without thinking that some are more important than others.

Today, for me, all matches count.

It doesn't matter if I play Djokovic or someone lower ranked.

You were very strong very young.

In 2010,

I've been detached from everything that can be said about me for a long time.

There will always be people to criticize but I manage more and more to ignore.

The pressure, I took it off myself.

It's up to me to chart my course without listening to what may be said.

I do the maximum on my side, I would always like to go higher.

Sometimes there are slack.

I know what I've done wrong in the past and I try not to repeat it.

These criticisms, do you find them on social networks?

Yes, but also in the newspapers.

There will always be someone to say "it's luck, it's not deserved, etc.

or to say so that I'm not mentally strong enough.

People will always be there to criticize, it's part of the game. Again, I do my best and that's what counts in the end.

We have read that you are living a second career.

Isn't that a bit exaggerated?

I do not believe.

I think I'm a different player than before the Covid.

The way I approach things and how I behave on the pitch has clearly evolved.

On the level of play, I have not necessarily changed much.

But in terms of attitude and personal belief, yes.

What do you attribute this change to?

That's when I asked myself all possible and imaginable questions: do I really want to continue?

At what price ?

Today, every morning, I really know what I want to do and I have no regrets at the end of a tournament, whether it was good or bad.

I made a decision, I assumed it and I was fully into it.

Which was less the case before.

Have you really thought about quitting?

The confinement was hard, we had to leave after being at home for a long time.

So yeah, it crossed my mind even though it never really took shape.

If I wasn't ready to make every effort, I wouldn't have returned to tournaments.

It requires a lot of sacrifice.

It's not easy to leave so often and so far from home.

Are you traveling alone or with your trainer (Nicolas Devilder)?

I am with my coach.

There is always someone with me at tournaments.

This is how I have worked since the recovery after the Covid.

It motivates me even more every day.

Sometimes, when you're alone, it's hard to realize what good or bad you can do.

Do you now count the points to know if you will stay in the Top 100?

No, I hardly look at the rankings anymore.

I know he is good.

If I do things right, there is no reason for it to drop.

The important thing is to beat good players, and to meet very good players to see where I am compared to them.

When I go on the field against Djokovic and I really have the idea of ​​being able to beat him, it's something good because it was not the case before.

It's moving in the right direction.

Are you where you wanted to be when you decided to be a professional gamer?

At that time, it didn't mean much to be Top 100… And then, when you arrive 70th in the world, you want to be 50th.

When you're 50th, you want to be 30th.

It never stops.

This is the story of the eternal dissatisfied.

I'm very happy to be where I am today, but I don't want to stop and I believe I can go even higher.

That's what's nice too… Being well ranked and telling yourself that you still have room for improvement.

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