Richard Gasquet lost in five sets in the first round of the US Open on Monday, ending a season without a Grand Slam victory, but despite the defeat he looks at 37 years old towards next season and considers himself capable of winning still in Majors. The Biterrois lost 6-3, 6-1, 6-7 (5/7), 6-7 (1/7), 6-2 against Hungarian Fabian Marozsan (92nd).
“In the fifth, of course you believe it… Throughout the match he hit the ball better, he served better, he made a lot of winning shots, a lot of mistakes too, but he was the one who dictated the game. I fought, but he made a very good fifth,” commented Gasquet. “I’m having a bad start to the match, I’m not really on the pace. But it’s a best of five sets match, a lot can happen. I tried to fight until the end,” he added.
For the first time since 2004, he completed a season without having won a single Grand Slam match and at the time he had not participated in Flushing Meadows at all. “The matches in three winning sets are the hardest, it has nothing to do with the matches in two sets, so the more it will advance, the more difficult it will be, necessarily”, underlined in reference to his age the 85th world.
“But I still think I can win a little bit. It is sure that at the level of the format, it is difficult”, he added. “I want to play. I want to try to finish the season well and start again next year no matter what. The physical is not bad all the same, it is not ridiculous, I hold the matches. After that, you have to try to play well. There is always the desire to play, the matches are always good feelings, defeats or victories”, he noted.