Zizou Bergs defeated No. 24 seed Alejandro Tabilo in the opening round at the French Open and likely already secured his long-awaited Top 100 debut. Looking further into the event, the aspirations must be much higher. Maybe the Belgian can take advantage of taking over Tabilo’s spot in the draw and celebrate his entrance into the world’s best hundred with a run that will properly put his talent on the map.
Bergs made headlines as a 21-year-old wildcard into the main draw of the ATP 250 in Antwerp back in 2020. Ranked No. 528 at the time, he delivered a couple of stellar performances to defeat No. 45 Albert Ramos-Vinolas and push No. 17 Karen Khachanov to three sets. The expectations have been very high since, with Bergs becoming a bit of a cult player among tennis fandom. Whether it was through his TikTok profile (where he currently has almost 76 thousand followers) or through the occasional peak performances, he has had a lot more hype than your average player outside the Top 100.
Close, but no cigar
After that Antwerp run, he soon began making progress on the Challenger circuit, claiming three titles in 2021 (St. Petersburg, Lille, Almaty). By the summer of 2022, it became clear that the Belgian was on his way to making a Top 100 push. Winning the Challenger in Ilkley on grass not only displayed his surface versatility (along with Frances Tiafoe, they’re the only active players with a title at this level on hard, grass, green clay, and red clay) but also granted him a Wimbledon wildcard.
However, physical issues continued to plague him, and his chances for a Top 100 debut in 2022 ended pretty much in his first-round encounter with Nikoloz Basilashvili in Metz. Bergs was leading by a set and a break before having to retire due to a back problem. While his entire season had Top 100 campaign-like highlights, the nibbles that kept troubling him made it hard for the Belgian to find that middle ground in terms of consistent results.
The 2023 season wasn’t that dissimilar, with Bergs missing out on a great shot to make the Gstaad semifinals (led Kecmanovic 4-1 double break in the 3rd) and then injuring his wrist. For a couple of months, he kept playing while only slicing his backhand, inspired by Corentin Moutet, who switched to a one-hander that year while recovering from surgery. Perhaps, in the long run, it strengthened the Belgian’s tenacity and maybe even made him a better player, but it was impossible to make that Top 100 push with a hurt wrist. By the end of the season, he was back healthy, and two Challenger titles in November/December meant one thing – a Top 100 debut is likely happening in 2024.
Seeking first Grand Slam main draw win
With little to defend in the first half of the season, Bergs needed to stay calm and pick up some solid results to make the Top 100. It wasn’t easy at first, despite a lucky loser spot he took into the Australian Open, where he took a set off Stefanos Tsitsipas but suffered due to the heat. Another great green clay swing got him much closer to the goal as he defended his Tallahassee title and added a final in Sarasota, the latter being a direct play-off with Thanasi Kokkinakis for a Roland Garros main draw spot. If he won that day, Bergs would have broken the Top 100 in April.
Despite the Sarastoa final loss, the chance was still there, and Bergs delivered as one of the main favorites to qualify for the French Open, surviving a tough encounter with his countryman Joris De Loore in the second round. No. 24 seed and Rome semifinalist Alejandro Tabilo was far from the easiest draw he could have gotten, and for a while, it seemed like the Chilean was going to cruise. But an incredible second set steal from Bergs (six set points saved from 2-6 2-5, broke to stay in the set three times) allowed him to turn the tables on his opponent completely. It’s not mathematically safe yet (it might be very soon, depending on other results), but it’s likely that this win finally brought him that long-awaited Top 100 debut.
What lies ahead?
Will it be a one-and-done French Open for Bergs (well, technically, he’s already won four matches in Paris this year), or is there potential for more? Taking over the draw of the No. 24 seed Tabilo seems great as the Chilean was perceived as one of the dark horse contenders. Bergs leads the head-to-head against Maximilian Marterer 2-1 (1-0 on clay), with his opponent having a rough season, 7-14 for the year. Going a step further could potentially see him facing No. 10 seed Grigor Dimitrov, who’s yet to reach the French Open quarterfinals.
Even the seeds in the section next to Bergs aren’t that strong, with Hubert Hurkacz and Frances Tiafoe not being any clay-court juggernauts. The chance for a win or two is there and we’ll get to see if the Belgian can step up to take it. Beating Tabilo was his first Top 50 win since that aforementioned Ramos-Vinolas match in Antwerp four years ago. The 24-year-old has never really had a blowout loss to a top-quality player, though, and if he faces someone like Dimitrov, he has all the tools to put pressure on the Bulgarian’s backhand slice and follow up his inside-in/inside-out forehands into the forecourt.
Bergs shares his birthday with a certain 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal, who went out in the opening round to Alexander Zverev on Monday. How magical would it be if, by the 3rd of June, the Belgian was still in the draw, recovering from his 4th round clash before the quarterfinals? Let’s see what Bergs can make out of this opportunity, and even if he can’t take it and goes out to Marterer, he will still leave this year’s Roland Garros with plenty to be proud of.
Main Photo Credit: Clayton Freeman/Florida Times-Union]
