Imago
Image Credits: Gael Monfils/Instagram
Imago
Image Credits: Gael Monfils/Instagram
Gael Monfils‘ final run at the Monte-Carlo Masters was brought to an end by World No. 11 Alexander Bublik. The latter made a strong start to his clay-court season and recorded a comfortable 6-4, 6-4 victory over the veteran in what was his 13th appearance of the tournament. Interestingly, for Bublik, the win carried a sense of déjà vu in Monaco.
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Ten years ago, Gael and Alexander were hitting partners on these very courts. After sealing his win at Court Rainier III, Alexander reminded Gael of that memory during a brief post-match chat. The two shared a warm exchange as the crowd rose to applaud the French veteran.
“Do you know what? Exactly ten years ago, I was a hitting partner here,” Alexander Bublik told him.
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On the court, Sascha was in full control. His serve looked sharp and consistent, while Gael struggled with his second serve and paid for it early in the match. The Kazakh capitalized at a crucial moment to break Gael and secure the opening set.
The second set didn’t prove to be as easy for Bublik as Monfils held his serve confidently. But the Kazakh finally got an opportunity to break his opponent’s serve at 3-4. Though he did have his chances, Monfils did his best to hold and eventually won the game. With the crowd being firmly behind the 39-year-old, it looked like he would take the second set to a tie-breaker. However, Bublik had other ideas.
At 4-5, Monfils looked weak on his serve once again, and Bublik didn’t let the chance go by this time around. He went on to break the serve to win the match in straight-sets and advance to the Round of 16.
Full Circle Moment 🥹🔮
Exactly 10 years on from being a hitting partner with Monfils at Monte-Carlo, Bublik ends the Frenchman’s career at the #RolexMonteCarloMasters https://t.co/uA0PhvWf7k pic.twitter.com/cgjszwkihX
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 7, 2026
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Firdows Matheen