Five days before the Rolex Paris Masters, our consultant Arnaud Clément analyzes the good dynamic of French players, with a young generation pushed by Gaël Monfils, titled in Stockholm on Sunday.
In great shape, at the right time. As the Paris-Bercy Masters 1000 (Rolex Paris Masters) looms, from Saturday October 28 to Sunday November 5, French players, supported by the old and young generations, seem to be moving forward with almost newfound ambitions. Arnaud Clément, consultant for France Télévisions, sees them as outsiders, and capable of pulling off some nice surprises. Especially the day after Gaël Monfils’ 12th career title, he rose from 394th ATP rank last May to 89th place in the world, this Monday, October 23.
Franceinfo: sport: Arnaud, what is your view on this new remarkable performance from Gaël Monfils, who at just over 37 years old became the oldest French player in the Open era to win a title?
Arnaud Clément: Gaël, he’s been talking about his return for a while: it’s his desire that makes the difference, it’s his driving force! There are players, even when they have a little less desire, they manage to do certain things. Gaël, he really needs this. He is fulfilled in his family life too, he is a father now, so I think he has a balance in his life today which is ideal. He wants to see what he is still capable of doing, how he manages to come back after his major injuries. He is managing quite well, with all the tournaments he has played since the start of the year. It wasn’t easy though. But here he is back in the 100, it’s an important first step.
“He still has this flame, you can feel it. He talks about it, he is happy. Sometimes, he even says that he wants to play until he is 40.”
Arnaud Clément, France Télévisions consultantat franceinfo: sport
Being able to go for a new title is quite fabulous at the end of the season, in a tournament that he loves, which he had already won (in 2011). We see that Gaël, when he wants to, when he is prepared, he always remains as efficient. He particularly impressed me with his ability, this summer in Masters 1000, to string together very high level matches. We all wondered how his body would react and then in the following tournaments, he was once again able to put in some very good matches. So yes, we can say that we found Gaël Monfils.
How could the way he developed his game prove to be decisive in getting to this point?
We see that the tennis played by Gaël, for a while, is much more aggressive and a little less energy-intensive even if he still has this ability to defend hard. It’s quite rare today to see him rely mainly on his defense to try to win a game. It’s also because it manages itself better. He will no longer be able to play 25 to 30 tournaments a year at this level. However, as we can see, he remains very efficient when he is good. He has periods of downtime, periods where he has to recover, periods where he has to deal with small glitches. And when he starts again, he performs well again! And that is very important for his confidence.
Behind Gaël Monfils, we have a young generation which seems to be asserting itself more and more, illustrated by Arthur Fils, 38th in the world at 19 and finalist in Antwerp this weekend…
Above all, we still see significant potential in Arthur Fils. But I see and I know the question… (laughs) Will he make the top 10 one day? Or will he be able to play the final rounds at Grand Slams in the future? There is still a lot of work to be done, but compared to what we see, we see several things that should allow him to get closer to the top fifteen fairly quickly. His state of mind, his ambition, his way of working and wanting to achieve his goals. I really like. In any case, in my opinion, he is on the right track and he is now giving himself the means to achieve his ambitions.
There is also Luca Van Assche (19 years old, 63rd in the world). He is also well established even if he is a little lower ranked than Artur Fils. He has progressed enormously over the past year, he is stabilizing. He will also continue to climb the rankings. It’s the same for Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard (20 years old, 194th). Above all, this generation can and must rise to the top. They work and know each other very well.
Can this young generation benefit from this current collective emulation, with long-established players like Gaël Monfils, but also Richard Gasquet, Adrian Mannarino or even Ugo Humbert?
This healthy competition is an excellent thing. I was able to experience this in my time too, we were among friends. We went up together, and we were getting on each other indirectly. When we see these players rub shoulders and cross paths, we see that there is a great understanding. They are happy when one of them performs well.
“It’s a great overall dynamic that other young players will be able to join in the months to come. And it’s possible mutual help between everyone, also with the oldest.”
Arnaud Clément, former world number 10 and France Télévisions consultantat franceinfo: sport
It’s good for everyone to have these veterans who are with them on this circuit, with whom they can talk, Adrian, Richard or Gaël. They will not be stingy, I am convinced, with advice to give to this young generation who gives the impression of wanting to learn from them. We have a dozen players in the world top 100, and we have all generations. This is proof that the dynamic works a little in all directions.
So this bodes very well for this Paris-Bercy Masters 1000?
We know today that we can have some very nice surprises in this type of tournament. Not just in terms of results in a match, but also with players who will be capable of stringing together very good matches. We also know how tough the Rolex Paris Masters is, with a high probability of playing a world top 15 in every round. But today, we have players capable of coping with that. And from this year, very beautiful things can happen. But there will still be surprises. Even today, they will remain outsiders. Even Gaël, and even if we know that he is capable of winning two, three, even four matches at Bercy.