The 37-year-old Frenchman kicks off his 17th Roland-Garros with a four-set win over Seyboth Wild
©Corinne Dubreuil / FFTIn 2023, Gael Monfils arrived at Roland-Garros ranked No.394 after an extended injury hiatus, and without a Grand Slam match win in more than a year.
But the 2008 semi-finalist stepped on Court Philippe-Chatrier to face Argentina’s Sebastian Baez and, buoyed by the fervent support of the French public, rallied from a 4-0 fifth-set deficit for one of the game’s most improbable all-time comebacks that clocked in at nearly four hours.
Twelve months later, Monfils—now ranked No.37, and just outside this year’s top 32 seeds—returned to Paris to thrill with another night-session triumph: this time, a much tamer four-set win over Brazil’s Thiago Seyboth Wild, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Despite much less drama this time around, there was no shortage of energy in the building for the sentimental favourite over the course of two hours and 34 minutes on court, as the public braved plunging temperatures in Paris’ late evening to rally their man to a 39th career win at his home major.
Last year, Seyboth Wild—then ranked No.172—had his own high-profile opening victory at Roland-Garros, as he came through qualifying and upset then-world No.2 Daniil Medvedev in a five-set first-round match on Chatrier—making him the lowest-ranked man to upset a top 2 player at a Grand Slam in more than two decades.
But there was no headline-grabbing reprise for the 2018 Roland-Garros boys’ singles semi-finalist a year later.
Monfils broke serve to start the match, and only dropped five points on his delivery in the first set. However, the 58th-ranked Brazilian had no ideas of letting the same thing happen after dropping serve to start the second set—and four straight games helped him on the road to knotting the action at one set apiece after little more than a quick-paced hour on court.
He even led by a break in the third set as he battled to score his first match win at a Grand Slam since his eventual third-round effort last year.
But more Monfils magic soon came: down 2-0, the Frenchman ran off five straight games to turn the third set around, and despite failing to convert four break points in the first game of the fourth set, secured the match’s decisive break in a seventh game that Seyboth Wild had two chances to win.
©Corinne Dubreuil / FFTEver the showman, Monfils has always risen to the occasion at his home major. Despite entering the tournament on a three-match losing streak and healing from what he described pre-tournament as flu-like symptoms that are progressively getting better, he is now 15-2 in the first round at Roland-Garros all-time (and one of those losses was in his 2005 debut).
Nine aces and 43 winners helped Monfils’ cause in victory. He also totalled fewer unforced errors than Seyboth Wild off the ground—and, despite being 13 years his opponent’s senior, fared better in longer rallies than shorter ones. Of the 36 exchanges in the match that lasted more than nine shots, Monfils won 25 of them.
In a sentimental moment, Monfils’ win also gives him 122 Grand Slam main-draw victories (and counting). He now has the most among Frenchmen, breaking the tie he had with his good friend Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who retired in 2022.
©Corinne Dubreuil / FFTMonfils will hope that his 2024 Roland-Garros campaign has a sweeter ending than last year’s—or at least, that he’ll be able to leave Paris on his own terms. He was unable to take the court for his second-round match last year, withdrawing from the tournament fatigued and injured following his heroics against Baez.
But in two days, the Frenchman will next face No.30 seed Lorenzo Musetti of Italy—whom Monfils beat in their only previous meeting, two years ago on hard courts—and should he pass that test, a familiar third-round foe could await. The winner of that match is projected to face world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who will open his tournament on Tuesday.
ROLAND-GARROS
19 May - 8 June 2025
