Since French men’s tennis can (almost) no longer offer us emotions on the court, we will still have to wait until the end of a match to see the hairs on our arms rise and reserve, in their own way, a standing ovation for one of the most valiant representatives of the French Touche: Gilles Simon. At 37, the Niçois will experience his last Masters 1000 at Bercy. His last tournament, too, since Gillou decided to put away his rackets after a last appearance in Paris.
The handkerchiefs are already ready. What do you want, we are starting to get used to it, five months after Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s farewell speech at Roland-Garros. There is one, on the other hand, who is not really prepared for this epilogue. His name is Ricardo Beron, a humble Argentinian father from Buenos Aires, who is the biggest Gilles Simon fan on this earth. Yes, the greatest, without discussion possible. This dear Ricardo knows everything about Gilles, follows all his matches, has created a complete database on him, and lives (almost) only by him.
- The first time he saw Gilles Simon play:
“Me, I started to follow tennis late, even if I don’t remember the exact date, I think the first match I saw of Gilles was at Wimbledon 2008, where he beats Agustin Calleri before losing to Gasquet. I fell in love with his way of despairing his opponents, his way of studying the game of whoever was on the other side to offer him the most difficult ball to play. And then the fact of running for hours despite his skinny arms… Since then, I get up at any time of the night to follow him and I have created a database with all his matches. I know that he played his first “pro” match on July 22, 2002 in a Future tournament in France and that he lost it against Julien Mathieu (1-6, 2-6). His first victory was against Jérôme Almagrida. That’s love, right? »
- The time he met Gilles Simon:
“I was close to him on February 21, 2012, during the Copa Claro in Buenos Aires, but I didn’t have the courage to go talk to him. My son managed to get him to sign an autograph on a giant tennis ball that I keep at home. I was paralyzed to see him so close, hitting the ball like a bamboo stick. I was able to greet whoever was his trainer at the time and I gave him a CD with a selection of Argentine songs so that he could get to know us a little better. I hope Gilles was able to listen to it”
- The time he learned that Gilles Simon was going to retire:
“I expected this decision, but I didn’t want to hear it. I regret that his knee gave him up. What moves me is the way he pays attention to his fans, making them believe that everything is fine, that he just wants to rest, that he made this decision himself, blah, blah, blah … But fans experience it as a terrible injustice of fate.
Since his announcement, I have seen him fight in Challengers to earn ATP points and thus qualify for tournaments thanks to his ranking and not by wild cards. Even then, he’s a simple guy, like he doesn’t want to take another person’s place. For me, his retirement sounds a bit like the end of an era and I even believe in my interest in tennis. My son has seen it a bit like that since Federer retired. »
- The time he learns what becomes of Gilles Simon after his playing career:
“I really hope he will coach a player one day, because, with everything he knows, he has an ‘obligation’ to pass on to future generations, especially his way of approaching a match. His knowledge of winning, his knowledge of losing, the smile he inspired in each spectator in front of each of these shots that came out of nowhere, his way of not taking anything seriously…. If there was a ranking of wise men in tennis, he would surely play the Masters every year. May he be happy, or rather continue to be. »
For Ricardo, the end of the story with Gilles Simon will take place on an old streaming, earphones in the ears to “prevent people from disturbing me”. But, for nothing in the world, he will not miss the farewell of “Gillou” on the courts. And, if the Musketeer reads us, Ricardo had one last remark to make to him: “Does he remember the match against Gaudio in Hamburg in 2006. Simon had won 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 where the Argentine had shouted: “Que mal lo estoy pasando”? Ricardo had had a great time.