French No 1 claims he ‘deserved better’ after Paris Masters snub
Ugo Humbert believes he “deserved better” after the French No 1 was scheduled to play out on Court 1 at the Paris Masters – while two lower-ranked compatriots were on Centre Court.
The 15th seed in Paris, Humbert made light work of his round two encounter on Wednesday, breezing past Marcos Giron 6-3, 6-2 to book a blockbuster third-round contest against Carlos Alcaraz.
However, after playing his opening match against Brandon Nakashima on Centre Court, Humbert was snubbed on Wednesday and forced to play on the much smaller Court 1.
In his place, world No 20 Arthur Fils and world No 31 Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard – France’s second and third-ranked players – were scheduled on Centre Court.
And, speaking after his victory, the 26-year-old admitted he was disappointed not to get the opportunity to return to the main court at the Accor Arena.
“I was disappointed because I think I deserved better. I’m No 1 French player, and I have practiced on the centre court,” he said.
“It’s my favourite tournament. I was disappointed that I was not on the centre court. But I have deserved to play for the third round.
“I’m someone who is very nice. But, you know, sometimes it is used against me. I’m delighted to have won this match, to have deserved playing on the centre court against Alcaraz.”
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Humbert’s match against Alcaraz is all but guaranteed to be on Centre Court, and he will not be the only French player in round three.
Fils successfully navigated his round two contest against Jan-Lennard Struff, with the in-form rising star defeating the German 6-3, 6-4.
Meanwhile, Mpetshi Perricard was beaten in three sets by Karen Khachanov, though is still front and centre of a French tennis boom after his stunning triumph at the Swiss Indoors and Basel.
And Humbert believes that it is “amazing” to see so many French players joining him near the top of the ATP Rankings.
He added: “It’s amazing. It’s great for French tennis. There are a lot of French players playing well here for. For the public also it’s important, and I can say that it’s just positive things.
“I’m not surprised. We have wonderful French players, so I’m not surprised to see so many French players for the third round.”
It has been 16 years since Jo-Wilfried Tsonga became the last Frenchman to win the title, and hopes will be high that a French player can end that run in the near future.
