Richard Gasquet’s last victory on grass against a top 10 dated back to the magnificent quarter-final of Wimbledon 2015, when he eliminated Stan Wawrinka. Eight years later, he did it again after a snatch success over Stefanos Tsitsipas (5th), made epic by the end of the match where he concluded with his fifth match point against an ultimately very tense Greek. What better way to celebrate his 600th victory on the circuit, which ranks him 4th among active players behind Nadal, Djokovic and Murray?
After a very complicated ground season, the Frenchman has regained his verve and a bit of his magic on grass, what we could call “the Gasquet touch”, in passing, short game, or dazzling backhand counter. At his age, the Biterrois prefers, by far, grass. Stitches fly faster. He knows how to play with angles and opposites. Take advantage of free points on serve (81% of points earned behind his first ball). And this Thursday, perhaps Tsitsipas was still a little on his cloud, landed from Dubai in the middle of a very documented “love affair” on social networks with the Spanish player Paula Badosa.
Five match points
Very quickly broken in the first set, Gasquet quickly recovers thanks to a double fault from the Greek. Everything is played in the tie-break, where, if he saves a set point with a good forehand attack, he manages to conclude on the third he obtains, imperturbable on a new forehand attack behind his serve . Afterwards ? He does not give the impression of worrying about the fate of a bad second set that quickly got off to a bad start after a break conceded at the start.
But he recovers very quickly in the third set, and gets back into the fight. If he is the first to get a break point, it is he who, at 1-1, then 3-3, must work to save his face-off. at 6-5, where he gets five match points, a little thanks to the feverishness of the Greek and also with two magnificent backhand accelerations. And it’s Tsitsipas, on a wooded forehand, who ends up wooded after 2h19 of play…