After a start to his career marked by a few nervous breakdowns, Roger Federer conveyed the image of a gentleman on the tennis courts. This did not prevent Gaël Monfils and Félix Auger-Aliassime from getting confused during “his” Laver Cup. Respectively members of Team Europe and Team World, the two players came together to play the third match of the first day of the event. But, obviously, they did not come with the same motivations.
The argument started in the first set. Monfils sat behind a linesman, just to point out his mistakes, which forced his opponent to wait before serving. If the Frenchman narrowed this gap, it was in order to put on a show for the Canadian public. A fairly logical ambition: the Laver Cup is not an official competition. Involved during the exchanges, the “Monf” was rather relaxed between the points. Auger-Aliassime did not show up on the court for the glitter, but rather to win the game.
Auger Aliassime & Monfils got into a bit of an argument during their match at Laver Cup.
Gael felt like the atmosphere was a relaxed, fun environment.
Felix was treating it like a regular ATP tournament.
Does anyone speak French? 😂
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 23, 2023
He first called out to the referee, to ask her if she applied the ATP rules, before addressing the Parisian. “I don’t know what you’re playing?” I want to play seriously,” he told him in French. Monfils had released another score: “Is it an ATP tournament or not? I’m here to have fun. » The exchange lasted almost a minute, before the stunned look of John McEnroe, captain of Team World. Then, the players returned to the court.
However, they have not completely moved on. Two side changes later, Monfils showed annoyance to the rest of Team Europe, who lost the first four Laver Cup matches. “Honestly, I’m not in the mood to play, I don’t have the right vibes. If I don’t want to do a tournament, I don’t do it. Someone called me saying that the Laver Cup was so cool, that we could play freely. I’m here to have fun. »
On the other hand, “FAA”, in discussion with John McEnroe and Ben Shelton, still couldn’t believe it: “What did the people who brought him here say to him? » Motivated by playing at home, Auger-Aliassime finally won in two sets (6-4, 6-3). The two players exchanged a hug at the end of the game. A year after Roger Federer took advantage of his tournament to retire, a little drama was needed to spice up this Laver Cup.
2023-09-23 15:42:37
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