“I thought, oh, good, it’s not going to be 0-6” – between laughs and tears, Monfils explains mindset in Roland-Garros epic
Gael Monfils has revealed what was going through his mind when he fell behind 0-4, 30-40 in the fifth set of his first-round Roland-Garros match against Sebastian Baez
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France’s Gael Monfils has given a rare insight into his mindset off the back of his epic five-set victory over Sebastian Baez on day three of Roland-Garros.
With the 36-year-old veteran coming from behind to win in outrageous fashion in the fifth set, Monfils had this to say about his win:
“It’s definitely in like top two (wins of my career). It was unbelievable atmosphere as well. Of course this one is another flavor. I’m older, and even less chances, let’s say, to win this match today.”
Despite the unlikeliness of Monfils’ win, the world No 394 was quick to give credit to the crowd for his victory.
“It’s because of you” – Monfils credits crowd support for comeback win
Physically shattered, Gael Monfils took the time to address those who had stayed well beyond midnight on Philippe-Chatrier to cheer him on.
“It is so late, you stayed. You helped me, it was so difficult, it was because of you I won this match.
“I was just pushed by the fans! Let’s keep going, let’s do it again. I got a breath of fresh air. Let’s have some fun.”
Undoubtedly, it’s matches like these that get crowds turning up to Roland-Garros in droves, and are unlikely to be forgotten any time soon.
Avoiding the bagel got Monfils going in fifth set
The Frenchman later confessed in his press conference that the initial motivation for his fifth set comeback was simply to avoid being swept 0-6 in the decider.
“I thought, oh, no, I don’t want to have 0-6. Only Murray did this to me. I thought, oh, hell, no. And Robredo as well I think. I thought, no, no, I want to at least win a game.”
When Monfils won a game after being behind 0-4 in the deciding set, a glimmer of hope began to appear for the 36-year-old.
“Then with mixed feeling, I was very happy to have won a game. I thought, oh, good, it’s not going to be 0-6, and two very good forehand shots. I thought there’s a world there, we’re going to do something.”
I thought there’s a world there, we’re going to do something.
And “do something” is exactly what Monfils did, drawing level at 4-4 and kicking on to win the set 7-5.
“Honestly, I asked the crowd to scream.”
Gael Monfils
Monfils explained that much of his tennis was full of adrenaline, and this is how he negated his physical issues late in the match.
“You forget it’s the first round, you’ll say, Oh, wow, that was amazing crazy this evening, and then I didn’t even know where I was.”
“It’s one of my best matches, the best sports moment I could experience.”
Describing the match as “a cinema,” Monfils will now prepare himself to face No 6 Holger Rune in the second-round. Rune progressed through his first-round match in less dramatic fashion, dispatching Christopher Eubanks in four sets earlier in the day.
Fans have been put on notice by the home favourite, however, with Monfils declaring, “We’re going to try to have the same party for the second round!”
