Peter Bodo has been covering tennis for over 35 years, mostly recently for ESPN.
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“It’s a court I love”, he told the crowd during an on-court interview. Two years ago at Ashe, he lost a heartbreaking Open quarterfinal to Roger Federer in five sets after leading by two sets and holding two match points. It lacked the spectacular circus shots and athletic feats that have become Monfils’ trademark.
A win in the semifinals would put Monfils into the finals of a Grand Slam singles event for the first time.
The French stampede at the US Open continues in the quarter-finals when 24th seed and Lucas Pouille goes head-to-head with countryman and entertainer Gael Monfils.
Tenth-seeded Monfils was in control throughout against the 22-year-old Pouille, who was coming off an epic fifth-set tiebreaker win over 14-time major victor Rafael Nadal. He showed why no one has been able to pull off the feat with a game that faded gradually but inexorably, like the signal of a radio station on a long vehicle ride.
Pouille started well, making good use of his serve, but Monfils wore him down in the middle of the first set to break at 4-3 before inconsistencies got the better of Pouille as he lost the opener. “Of course, this Grand Slam is very unique for me: I never experienced something like this – to have three retirements on the road to the semifinals”.
AN UPS AND DOWNS GAME – If in the key moments best players can count on a very important shot like the serve, he always puts IN a first serve that does not hurt.
Monfils’ form in 2016 is something Pouille should be wary of. Monfils had 13 aces on the day, topping out at 135 miles per hour. His groundstrokes were crisp and purposeful, beautifully balanced between consistency and probing aggression.
“He’s moving so well”, Pouille said.
Pouille’s fluorescent pink and yellow outfit seemed more apropos for a day at the beach; perhaps that’s why he so often seemed to be running in sand. Pouille had 44 unforced errors on the afternoon, against only 15 for Monfils.
It’s hard to share this very discutible opinion: when you are up 4-3 30-0 in the fifth set, when a few games later in the tie-break on 6-all you miss a very easy forehand, especially if you hit a victor from the same position with the same shot a few mind later, it’s not understandable believe that all these missed chances are caused by his technique or by a lack of confidence on this shot that is less effective than the forehand.
Monfils is competing with a steely glint in his eye, but he denies it’s because he’s less concerned with showmanship and dazzling feats of athleticism than finding ways to win. “Even if you have match points, it happens in sport”. “Just going for it and just trying to stay a little bit relaxed when it’s close and just go for it when I have the chance”. When you make the show, honestly, it’s to entertain, but it’s (also) to win. The 30-year-old would definitely want to improve on his grand slam record and overcome his young compatriot on Tuesday.
Monfils added that those frequent diving volleys and retrieves aren’t attempts to leap straight into the hearts of his audience.
Sometimes I couldn’t even hear myself when I was saying ‘Allez, allez, allez. “So what’s the point to make the show and lose, actually?”
But Monfils turned 30 Thursday, and as much as he loves to have fun, he’s working to be more consistent and to win more. He said he has been more careful about his fitness and has adopted some new training habits. “I got a lot of days off and recovered my body”, Djokovic said. I think I have no shame to say it.
From a Monfils point of view, the longer the point the better. His concentration hasn’t wavered, either. He won 85 of his first serve points against Pouille, who was able to get just 66 percent of Monfils serves back into play.
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