Gregoire Marche (FRA) 3-1 Sebastien Bonmalais (FRA) 4-11, 11-7, 11-9, 4-0 rtd (56m)
A bit of a weird match. Seb was very up for it, having never won against his compatriot. Greg had a big match yesterday, and at 1/1, 7/2, Seb seemed to be a bit in control. But in a lunge, he snapped his hamstring, and that was more or less over, even if he carried on till the 4th game…
Grégoire : He’s a great friend, and that’s not how you want to win a match.
We were having a tough match; I had a hard time getting into it, maybe because of yesterday’s match as well in the first game. In the second game, I felt like I was taking control, even though I lost the first one, I was still making him work. I felt the ball better than yesterday, much more relaxed, so I knew it wasn’t a big deal to lose the first game.
After it was 1/1, I started the 3rd game poorly, but again, I felt like I was making him work. I made a few mistakes, he kept returning everything, and honestly, he was super precise—quality play, really clean, and a fast pace. At 7/2, he got injured, his hamstring.
Well, that’s not how you want to win, but I felt that the longer the match went on, the more it could become manageable for me. He tried to push through at the end of the 3rd game. I was cautious because at the European Championships, he was injured with an ankle sprain, and against the English in the final, he won despite the pain. I know he can be fierce, that he wants to fight. So I tried to stay focused—at 8/8, 9/9 in the 3rd game, you have to be rigorous because he can hit two or three winners, and then you never know.
I hope it’s not too serious and that he’ll recover quickly.
Tomorrow, Diego on the glass court. It’s going to be tough, but I feel good. It’s going to be completely different conditions—very hot!
