Estoril, Portugal–
Richard Gasquet lost in qualifying against Lucas Pouille on Sunday, but five days later he finds himself playing a first ATP level quarterfinal since August. Life hasn’t been easy for the Frenchman, who started 2023 with a bang by winning a title in Auckland and looked like he might be back to a decent level but has since barely managed to win any matches in the past 15 months, finding himself ranked #122 at the moment.
Estoril has been a lucky place for him in his career, he won a title in 2015 and reached the finals in 2007 and 2012. But it has perhaps never been luckier than this year; with Alejandro Davidovich Fokina‘s withdrawal, Gasquet into the slot of the #4 seed and had a bye into the second round, where he faced a struggling Dominic Thiem to reach the quarterfinals. While Thiem is always a good win, he’s very far from the player he once was and Gasquet was always in with a good chance. He will now face Pedro Martinez in the quarters, another very winnable even if difficult match, and if he wins he will have a real chance to return to the Top 100 next week. Gasquet has set a goal to “get back to the Top 100.” “I’m fighting for it,” he declared. He could well do it this week already. Given Gasquet’s history at this tournament and how much he likes playing here, he certainly has a very good chance.
Actually winning the title will be a massive ask with the likes of defending champion Casper Ruud and Hubert Hurkacz still in the draw, but if he manages to reach the semifinals it can already be considered a very good week for the French veteran, especially after the way it started. With his career winding down, it remains to be seen whether there is still some ATP level success in store for Gasquet; if it is to happen, it’d be fitting if it were in Estoril, where he has played some of the best tennis over his career.
Main Photo Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
