Masters Series of Monte-Carlo: surprises and disappointments

The biggest disappointment of this second day of the Monte Carlo Masters Series is the elimination of Paul Henri Mathieu. We are especially disappointed because it deprives us of a second round where he would have faced Marat Safin for a Davis Cup rematch. Kristof Vliegen qualified and the player from beyond the Quiévrain will have to avenge his French neighbors. Paul-Henri Mathieu is courageous. A victim of severe gastroenteritis since Friday, the Alsatian didn’t have the strength necessary to get past the Vliegen obstacle. He competed during the first set, losing his serve only at 5-5. The Belgian concluded the set 7-5. The second began as the previous one ended. “Polo” lost his serve twice in a row and despite a comeback, Vliegen won 7-5 6-4. The Frenchman struck throughout the match with all his might but his blows lacked power. The tall blond Vliegen countered them without difficulty. Mathieu became annoyed, even showing bad luck with the net. Ultimately, he wasn’t far from victory. During the press conference, he admitted that he had even thought about withdrawing and that if he had beaten Kristof Vliegen, he would certainly have refused to face Safin on Tuesday.

Gaël Monfils, the eternal hope, the rude gem, weakened by a muscle strain, was also unable to defend his chances against Radek Stepanek. The games went by quickly. The first set was wrapped up in 17 minutes 6-0. The Frenchman unable to accelerate abandoned at 2-0 in the second set. Radek Stepanek will face Croatian Lubjicic in the next round.

Nadal’s Defeat…

In the French camp, only Marc Gicquel, the brand new veteran, qualified on Monday and joined his compatriots Julien Benneteau and Arnaud Clément. The thirty-something, 46th ranked player in the world, fought through three sets (7-5 5-7 7-5) to overcome Florian Mayer, ranked 40th. Marc Gicquel loves clay courts and his baseline exchanges trying to push his opponent further and further back. He proved this on court number 2 of the Monte Carlo Country Club. A worthy opponent and great prospect will present himself on Tuesday in the form of Andy Murray, the Briton, seeded number 8 in the tournament.

Apart from Paul Henri Mathieu’s defeat, the other surprise is the defeat of Cypriot and quasi-Frenchman Marcos Baghdatis, the second seeded player eliminated after Jarkko Nieminen. Belarusian Max Mirnyii took just two quick sets (7-5 6-4) to eliminate the former Australian Open finalist.

The last singles match on center court was spectacular with a clash of styles between server-volleyer Tim Henman and clay court specialist Juan Carlos Ferrero, very comfortable on the rock since he has won the tournament twice. The first set was very tight. Brilliant points succeeded one another. Tim Henman, 32 years old and in his fourteenth season at the highest level, was playing his best tennis, the same that allowed him to be the fourth-ranked player in the world and semifinalist at the French Open. The Spaniard, former Roland Garros winner, suffered the Englishman’s offensive play but positioned himself as the counterattacker he so enjoys. He hit harder at the end of the set. He ran faster, alternating passing shots and low hits. Tim Henman gave way 7-5. In the second set, the Iberian tennis player unfolded his game and won 7-5 6-2, positioning himself as a serious outsider for the final victory.

Meanwhile, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer waited. The Swiss conducted a training session on the opposing courts followed by many fans. The Majorcan took his bearings on center court late in the day during a doubles match where, partnered with Salva-Vidal, he lost against the Fisher-Thomas pair who could congratulate themselves on having defeated the invincible Nadal on clay!

Other qualifiers from Monday:

Youzhny, after Carlos Moya’s withdrawal, Seppi, Gaudio, Andreev, Soderling, Nalbandian, Chela.

Tuesday’s matches:

First round:

David Ferrer (ESP/No.12) – Gilles Simon (FRA)

Richard Gasquet (FRA/No.11) – Fernando Verdasco (ESP)

Benjamin Becker (GER) – Thomas Johansson (SWE)

Nicolas Massu (CHI) – Filippo Volandri (ITA)

Nicolas Almagro (ESP) – Tomas Berdych (CZE/No.10)

Albert Portas (ESP) – Dominik Hrbaty (SVK)

Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) – Andrei Pavel (ROM)

Sergio Roitman (ARG) – Jurgen Melzer (AUT)

Second round:

Roger Federer (SUI/No.1) – Andreas Seppi (ITA)

Andy Murray (GBR/No.8) – Marc Gicquel (FRA)

Lee Huyng-taik (KOR) – Mikhail Youzhny (RUS/No.13)

Marat Safin (RUS) – Kristof Vliegen (BEL)