Gael Monfils cruised through Jiri Vesely 6-1 6-2 in just 68 minutes in the third round of the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters setting up a quarter final against Marcel Granollers who stunned this year’s Indian Wells and Miami semifinalist David Goffin 7-6 6-4.
Vesely got an immediate break of serve in the opening game of the match but Monfils broke straight back in the next game. The Frenchman got another break in the fourth game for 3-1 before saving four break points in the next game. Monfils got his third break for 5-1 but made another double fault and hit a forehand into the net to face a break point which he saved.
Vesely recovered from 15-40 down on his serve in the third game but Monfils broke for 2-1. Monfils got the double break for 4-1 en route to closing out the second set in one hour and seven minutes. Vesely was too tired after stunning Novak Djokovic in yesterday’s second round match.
“I played a good match. I was broken in the first game. He made good drop shots. He imposed a strange rhythm. That made me more tense. I didn’t ’xpect drop shots that early in the match. I was lucky to break him back. Then we had some rallies. I was trying to hit to his forehand. He game me many points on his forehand. He wasn’t at ease with that shot. Of course, when you play a big match the day before. It’s always difficult to play again the next day. There are two solutions, either you play very well the next day, or it’s very tough. I believe for him it was not that good”, said Monfils.
Monfils will face lucky loser Marcel Granollers who followed up his win over Alexander Zverev on Wednesday with a 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 win over David Goffin.
Granollers had to save three break points in the second game. The opening set went on serve in the first four games. Both players traded breaks in the fifth and in the sixth games. Granollers was the first to break to 30 for 3-2 but Goffin broke straight back in the next game for 3-3. The next games went on serve until the tie-break where Granollers cruised through to 7-1.
The second set started with a trade of breaks in the first two games. Goffin was the first break in the opening game but Granollers broke straight back. The second set went on serve until 3-3. Goffin earned two break points in the seventh game but Granollers saved them with a down the line forehand and a service winner.
Granollers broke serve to 15 for 5-3. Goffin broke straight back to love for 4-5. Granollers got another break to 30 on the match point to seal the win. Goffin felt too tired after yesterday’s match against Fernando Verdasco in which he saved a match point.
Granollers has seized the chance to play in the Main Draw after replacing injured David Ferrer. The Spanish player has reached his first Masters 1000 quarter final since Rome 2013. Granollers leads 3-1 in his previous head-to-head matches against Monfils.
Jo Wilfried Tsonga set up an exciting quarter final match against Roger Federer with a 6-4 6.4 win over his countryman Lucas Pouille in one hour and 35 minutes in an all-French third round match. Tsonga got one break in each set in the first game of the opening set and in the ninth game of the second set when he converted his fifth break point chance for 5-4. Tsonga won 72 percent of his service points and had to save three break points in the first set.
Federer leads 11-5 in his previous head-to-head matches against Tsonga. The Frenchman won their last match in the Toronto in August 2014.
