Now don’t be surprised that the Frenchman is thirsty for revenge, if he had to deal with the worst fans this year in the entire ATP Tour.
Corentin Moutet got the best of his tennis and his personality when he went to play in Chile, and found a rude crowd that never understood that beautiful part of tennis: the controversy and tension between rivals.
“Revenge against Jarry at Roland Garros. I remember well the welcome they gave me at their home (Chile Open). I hope you guys are eager to show him that this time we are locals. Be ready and be loud. This is Paris,” Moutet wrote on his Instagram account after the draw said he will meet Chile’s Nicolas Jarry in the first round of Roland Garros.
The Frenchman received a dosis of rudeness at the Chile Open. Because it is one thing to cheer effusively for the compatriot player, and even to celebrate with more force the opponent’s mistakes: the ability of a fan to get into the opponent’s head and add pressure in delicate moments, sometimes defines matches and championships. There is nothing more boring than such soulless crowds. When the stands roar, the sport vibrates.
And without being a purist to criticize those who interrupt a tennis player’s sacred moment between the first and second serves, it must be emphasized that the ugly part happened at the end.
“Guys, please, one minute. I’m not leaving here.”
Moutet asked the stadium crowd to stop booing for a moment during his on-court interview after beating the local favorite. The hostility did not stop, and he decided to continue: “It’s very sad what happened today. Sport is a moment to share, to unite. I know I’m playing against a Chilean, but it doesn’t make me a bad guy”.
Those Chilean fans must have been angry because the local star and defending champion lost against a lower ranked player who played a very smart match; or maybe, they had blood in their eyes because in 2023 Moutet questioned the Chilean’s doping sanction.
What they did not understand is that that time in Santiago, the Frenchman did everything right. He started with a stroke of genius, an ace with an underarm serve, and from then on he got the best out of his personality to survive the crowd’s antipathy. He fed off it.
Tennis needs spice, and Moutet is one of those characters who entertains and knows how to spice it up, something necessary to maintain the good health of the sport.
Be ready and be loud, ici, c’est Paris. With reference to the PSG phrase included. This is Paris.
Jarry has already had to deal with raucous crowds this year. He did it in Argentina, when the fans at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club did their best not to let him play well, either when he did it against foreign stars Wawrinka or Alcaraz, or against Argentineans Etcheverry and Diaz Acosta. No booing. No insults. No negative demonstrations during on-court interviews.
Now it is Paris. They will play at Court Simonne-Mathieu, where the real fans show up, where everything that comes from the stands feels more intense. Jarry will have to prove that he is in a very good moment and that he has a better ranking against an opponent that summoned its wild crowd.
Appreciate the tennis. Appreciate the show. Appreciate the different personalities that are expressed within a rectangle divided by a net. Scream. Yell loud, but don’t disrespect, because everyone is watching.
Let them play. Let them speak.
