Every tournament held in France provides a great opportunity for the home players to shine. With Tsonga and Simon topping the star list, Metz was to be no exception. In the last two seasons, this has been Jo's playground, and the exuberant two-time defending champion was making a comeback this year after being sidelined since a nasty knee injury he sustained at Wimbledon.
After an intense week of tennis, there were three Frenchmen that made the last four, the two hot favourites, plus the rejuvenated Nicolas Mahut, who at 31 years old is enjoying an Indian summer this season, having claimed his first two career tittles. The only one standing in the way of a French final was Florian Mayer. The German put in a great fight, but came up short in the end against Tsonga to the delight of the partisan crowd. Simon beat Mahut, which ensured a dream final featuring the top two seeds.
Gilou has struggled with form in recent months, but the birth of this second son, Valentin, 13 days ago ignited him to produce his best tennis at this tournament. He didn't lose a set all week, and he wasn't to against Tsonga, taking full advantage of his compatriot's rustiness. Jo was slow out of the blocks and Simon did not allow him to ever get into the match, serving out a relatively straight forward 6-4,6-3 win. "I cannot become a father every week," he said. "It’s a beautiful story for sure. Unfortunately my wife and children couldn’t be here today. It was a great moment for me because I missed the birth of our first child and this time I was able to be there. I was very happy about that."
Gilou has struggled with form in recent months, but the birth of this second son, Valentin, 13 days ago ignited him to produce his best tennis at this tournament. He didn't lose a set all week, and he wasn't to against Tsonga, taking full advantage of his compatriot's rustiness. Jo was slow out of the blocks and Simon did not allow him to ever get into the match, serving out a relatively straight forward 6-4,6-3 win. "I cannot become a father every week," he said. "It’s a beautiful story for sure. Unfortunately my wife and children couldn’t be here today. It was a great moment for me because I missed the birth of our first child and this time I was able to be there. I was very happy about that."
Sunday provided even more disappointment for Jo, as he and Mahut lost the doubles final to Johan Brunstrom and Raven Klaasen, the Swedish-South African pair preventing thus a clean French sweep at the Moselle Open.
I've always said the French are lacking the mental strength to win big matches, but Tsonga, as well as Simon, did not quite fit into this category. Unfortunately though, Jo is beginning to develop this pattern more and more these days. He is losing matches he should be winning, missing out on once in a lifetime opportunities, like at this year's French Open. He has a tremendous game that could potentially make him a Grand Slam champion, but he has a lot of catching up to do if he wants to match Nadal, Djokovic, or Murray's current level. Allez Jo-Wilfried!
I've always said the French are lacking the mental strength to win big matches, but Tsonga, as well as Simon, did not quite fit into this category. Unfortunately though, Jo is beginning to develop this pattern more and more these days. He is losing matches he should be winning, missing out on once in a lifetime opportunities, like at this year's French Open. He has a tremendous game that could potentially make him a Grand Slam champion, but he has a lot of catching up to do if he wants to match Nadal, Djokovic, or Murray's current level. Allez Jo-Wilfried!
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| Two-time defending champion, Jo-Wilfried never got a chance to successfully defend his title against Simon. Jo was making a comeback following a knee injury he sustained at Wimbledon. |
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| Two weeks after the birth of his second son, Valentin, Simon produced a stunning display of tennis to win his second tittle in Metz. He did not lose a set all week, beating Tsonga 6-4,6-3 in the final. |
photos (top-down): GETTY IMAGES, Panoramic, AAP, ?
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