Gael Monfils enjoyed wowing the crowd at ASB Classic, despite loss

It was as enjoyable for New Zealand tennis fans as it was for Gael Monfils at the ASB Classic on Monday night, even though he lost.

Tennis’ great entertainer went down 6-4 6-7 7-6 to Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan and it was vintage Monfils.

The packed out ASB Tennis Arena marvelled at the winners he hit and even though he lost the match that lasted two hours, 35 minutes, so won’t get to play Ben Shelton in the next round, it was a memorable experience for everyone, including Monfils.

“It was a great game, I really enjoyed it,” Monfils said.

“That’s always the first goal when you arrive at a tournament, you feel great and you enjoy.

“It was a good match from my side, the first one of the season. You want a better result, but it was a good match.

“Coming from a sprained ankle a couple of weeks ago, locking my back a bit after that.

“To be able to play that level tonight was good. Fabian was better than me and I need to give him credit.”

There was a break of serve to Marozsan in the first set and he had two match points in the second set tiebreak.

Monfils saved them both and was serving for the match at 5-3 in the third set. It started with a double fault from him and didn’t get much better.

Then, in the third set tiebreak Monfils saved another match point, before going long with a forehand.

Monfils said he was feeling positive throughout the match.

“I just felt good to be honest, it was two match points saved,” he said.

“I felt like I had some opportunities to break him (earlier the set), I couldn’t convert them.

“I was a lot of time 0-30 on is serve and I couldn’t find the solution. Then of course I guess I was lucky to win the second set breaker.

“Then I just played my game, I tried to be solid, tried to be a bit more aggressive and it paid off until he broke me back when I was serving for the match.”

It was a special night for New Zealand tennis fans to see Monfils up close, but for him, every match is like this and there is the bigger picture of getting the most out of his only tournament before the Australian Open.

“I had a strong finish last year,” he said.

“I have big goals, first is to play tough tennis and when I play tough tennis is when I enjoy myself.

“I’m just being me. I don’t have much time to play more and when I have the chance to step on a court being healthy, the No 1 priority is to enjoy myself. It’s such a blessing to be a tennis player, so I enjoy myself. Try to play tough and I’m happy you guys liked it.”

There will never be another player like the 37-year-old Monfils, but he says he does see some of the younger players play in a similarly exciting way to him.

“I’m not watching so much. I am doing so many things outside of tennis.

“[But] I think there are exciting players. The young generation, they bring some stuff, different stuff. Like Carlitos (Carlos Alcaraz), Augur (Felix Auger-Aliassime). Those guys enjoy themselves on the court.

“In France we have Arthur (Fils), who is also bringing joy on the court.”

It has taken Monfils 10 years to play in Auckland since his last appearance at the tournament.

Will he be back? Right now, he’s not sure.

“I don’t know to be honest,” he said.

“I love it here, I love Auckland, but I like to play the first week and normally I don’t play the second week.

“I’ve had a good experience this year, so I might think about it, because it’s way different.

Obviously, Elina (Svitolina, his wife) will come back I hope, so I might give it a go.”

Meanwhile, there was a close 6-3 2-6 10-7 loss for Marcus Daniell and Ben McLachlan in the doubles against the top seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos late on Monday.

It was Daniell’s second tournament back after almost two years off the circuit because of a serious knee injury and his first appearance at Stanley Street since New Zealand’s Davis Cup win over Venezuela in March 2020.

“I’m not going to lie, I was pretty nervous before the match,” Daniell said.

“It’s been a couple of years since I’ve played Tour matches and to go on Centre Court at home, is a place that means a lot to me.

“I was definitely feeling the nerves out there, but I got on the court and I felt some of the old good memories and really enjoyed it from start to finish.

“I’m happy with how we played, I thought we put in a good match and those guys are quality and that showed in the super tiebreak.”