After the qualifications of Paul-Henri Matthieu, Gaël Monfils, and Guillaume Rufin, all three securing their spot for the round of 16, a delightful program was offered to the Nice spectators this Wednesday.
A day particularly disrupted by rain. By late afternoon, all matches were interrupted. Eventually, everything was back in order. As a result, all the French players involved, except Rufin who was defeated by Gilles Simon, managed to reach the quarterfinals.
The day had started well. The intense heat took over the rather dreary weather of the weekend.
By late morning, Edouard Roger-Vasselin was the first to secure a spot in the quarterfinals of the Nice Open.
The French player, invited by the organizers, eliminated the Lithuanian Ricardas Berankis in three sets: 2-6, 6-4, 6-2. He will face American Sam Querrey, who defeated Stakowsky, for a place in the semifinals.
A very relaxed Roger-Vasselin was found at the press conference. Clear-headed yet determined, he doesn’t hide his ambitions. His goal? “To relive a final.” We wish him the best.
On court number 1, Albert Montanes dismissed Romanian Victor Hanescu, a finalist here two years ago, in two close sets (7/5 7/6). The Spaniard, who replaced the number 1 seed, Tomas Berdych, showed opportunism and will play his quarterfinal against a certain … Paul-Henri Matthieu.
The ray of sunshine PHM
Opposed to an unleashed Berlocq, the Frenchman managed to get through a rather tricky match. Deservedly, PHM fought his way to his quarterfinal. Let’s revisit the highlights of this match.
Breaking at the start, a love game followed, and it’s the Argentine who made the best start to quickly lead 2-0. The Frenchman was then forced to play catch-up.
At 4/5, PHM earned his first two break-back points, admittedly helped by a slightly timid Berlocq at the moment of conclusion.
On a massive error from his opponent, Matthieu capitalized on the Argentine’s nerves and made a full comeback. After 50 minutes of play, it’s ultimately PHM who takes the first set (7/5).
At the end of the first set, the Argentine drags on time, with a bathroom break lasting beyond the 2-minute regulation. The Frenchman then becomes annoyed and complains to the umpire.
Clearly, Berlocq lacks sportsmanship … on the other hand, PHM literally implodes. The start of the second set is disastrous, 0-4 within minutes as the rain begins to fall on the Nice clay.
The Frenchman completely lost his way in the match and seemed to pay for the efforts made in the first set. Berlocq, whose bad spirit bordered on gamesmanship, equalized at one set all.
A few minutes later, the match was interrupted by rain. Upon his return to the court an hour later, the French player was much more aggressive. He eventually won 6-3 in the decisive set in extremely challenging weather conditions.
PHM is thus qualified for the quarterfinals. A very fine performance for someone who, until now, had not won a single match this season in an ATP Open. The Frenchman, ranked 76th this week, has indeed opened his account at the Nice Open.
Meanwhile, the crowd took their places on the secondary court of Nice LTC. The public attendance was substantial. The Spaniard Pablo Andujar delivered an almost flawless performance this afternoon, easily handling Taiwanese Lu. Having beaten Hewitt in the first round, the most French-speaking of Spaniards confirmed his current good form. It should be noted that Andujar broke into the draw in Madrid, reaching the semifinals of the Masters 1000 last week.
Isner out
The sensation of the day came from Robin Haase. The Dutchman eliminated John Isner, the 20th world player, right from his first match.
A victory at the finish 6-4, 6-1, 7-5 against a particularly nervy player. Once again this year, the American giant won’t make any waves on the grounds of Nice LTC and leaves through the back door.
Since his lost final in Houston last April, wins on clay have been scarce for the American. A record not particularly reassuring with the approach of Roland Garros.
Simon shows his experience
The all-French clash between Gilles Simon and Guillaume Rufin didn’t occur. Despite putting up a good fight, the 23-year-old did not weigh against a very focused Simon. The Nice player “wants to win the tournament” and it shows. Final score, 6-4, 6-3 in a match interrupted by rain. In the next round, the 17th world-ranked player should be wary of the very tenacious Andujar.
Monfils, at the end of the night.
Only a few brave souls could witness the remake of the epic 2010 Roland Garros duel.
Under the spotlights, and well past midnight, Gaël Monfils eventually overpowered the Italian Fabio Fognini, the match favorite, 6-2, 7-6. The match nearly had to be postponed until the next day due to the significant delays caused by the rain on this children’s day. “La monf” thrives on the “night session” atmospheres and continues to ride his wave of confidence, a freshly rediscovered confidence that notably allowed him to win the Bordeaux challenger last week. The world number 109 is improving, with his entire focus on tennis. Evidently, this year, the French player is not there to make up numbers and intends to prolong his Nice adventure as long as possible.
