Gaël Monfils is back in shape. And results. Finalist in Sofia ten days ago, a year and a half after his last appearance at this level, the Frenchman qualified last night for the round of 16 of the Masters 1000 Indian Wells thanks to his victory in straight sets against to Kevin Anderson (7-5, 6-2).
At times in difficulty in the service, with 11 double faults and 10 break points conceded, Monfils held up the shock. In a first marathon set (over an hour), he made the break at 5-4, Anderson immediately managed to pick up but the Frenchman resumed his service just after, at 6-5, before rolling into the second round. The current 18th in the world has even taken the time to do a little show.
ICYMI, @Gael_Monfils was SO CLOSE to hitting arguably the shot of 2021 🤯# BNPPO21 pic.twitter.com/alpJqISzoQ
– ATP Tour (@atptour) October 13, 2021
He will face in the round of 16 Alexander Zverev, 4th world player and Olympic champion, who has taken over his predecessor, Andy Murray. The challenge is great for Monf, which has not beaten a Top 10 player since March 2019. “I put myself in the situation to replay against big players, he said after his match. The more I play, the more I hope to titillate them. Why not just try to beat them? I recently played Rublev, Sinner, this is Zverev, a big game. I’m going to try to be more aggressive, for sure, to try to serve better … I feel good in general, but I know that I can play better. “