If he wants to reach the third final square of a Grand Slam of his career, after Roland-Garros 2008 and the US Open 2016, Gaël Monfils will have to play a big match Tuesday morning at the Australian Open against Matteo Berrettini , nicknamed the hammer. But the Parisian, at 35, has never seemed so sure of his strength.
Patrick Proisy, Yannick Noah, Nicolas Escudé, Arnaud Clément, Sébastien Grosjean, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Lucas Pouille know the smell of a semi-final in Melbourne. At 35, Gaël Monfils is aware that the opportunity will not present itself anytime soon. Until then, Melbourne has never really smiled at him. But the planets seem aligned. It was suspected that the draw had been favorable to him. The expulsion from Australian territory of Novak Djokovic – recorded by the judges late enough so that we do not touch the table – formalized this status. But the Parisian got the hang of it by winning his four matches without dropping a single set.
Usually, Monfils wandered on the way. But the Austrian rigor imprinted by his coach Gunter Bresnik – absent in Australia but who benefits from an excellent relay with his deputy – made him understand several essential aspects of the game. Gaël Monfils is no longer content to ride around. Now he lets go of the arm to hurt.
Highs and lows
This immaculate course brought the burning question to the press conference: has he ever played so well? The Parisian was almost offended: “Still guys, there is another Grand Slam where I played well, it was the US Open 2014. I lost against Roger (Federer) having had two balls from match…” During the famous Major which had devoted a non-member of the Big 3, in this case Marin Cilic.
Behind, “Monfe” had signed another interesting Flushing in 2016, where Novak Djokovic punished him in the semi-final. The way in which the Frenchman had made a mistake on the tactical plan had challenged the observers. What followed was tasteless. He missed the 2017 Davis Cup final. He came back to life during a fabulous month of February 2020 with two titles (Montpellier and Rotterdam) and played an anthology match in Dubai against Novak Djokovic. The Serb gets out of it by a mouse hole but “Monfe” is on a formidable wave. Alas, the Covid-19 comes to ruin everything…
Berrettini, a hell of a piece
At the end of 2020, he made a meaningful decision: he hired Gunter Bresnik, the former coach of Dominik Thiem, reputed to be intransigent. The Austrian technician wants to modify several aspects but the result is catastrophic at the Australian Open, where he falls against the Finn Emil Ruusuovuori. In a press conference, he even burst into tears. Depression is not far away. It will take months to emerge. His marriage to Elina Svitolina is his only ray of sunshine. A second professional marriage occurs with Decathlon who makes him a racket. The announcement is revealed at the end of December and during the first tournament, in Adelaide, the French raises his eleventh title. The Australian “Happy Slam” was looking bright. This is the case for now.
It remains to overcome the obstacle Matteo Berrettini. In the quarter-finals of the 2019 US Open, the Parisian had not assumed his status as a favorite against the Italian, “only” 25th in the world. The tie-break of the fifth set had highlighted its fragility in key moments. The time for revenge may have come even if “Monfe” has nothing but compliments for Berrettini, now 7th in the world. “For two years, he has been well anchored in the Top 10, he says. He is one of the best servers on the circuit. He has a very flashy game. Lots of winning points, a huge forehand. He moves better better. He does a lot of things. He’s someone who really pushes you. I’m expecting a big big battle. I’ve got my chance and I’ll try to go to the semis for the first time here .” The Rod Laver Arena is ready for a game that promises to be spectacular.
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