Defending Champ Goffin Battles From Brink In Montpellier
David Goffin’s Open Sud de France title defence was in jeopardy on Monday in Montpellier, but the Belgian battled into the second round.
Eighth seed Goffin rallied past Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi 2-6, 7-5, 6-1 in one hour and 53 minutes to improve to 9-3 at the ATP 250. He will play Frenchman Adrian Mannarino or Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round.
“The match was a very tough one, especially at the beginning when I was a little bit tight. My groundstrokes were a little bit too slow, a little bit too short,” Goffin said. “It’s never easy when Benjamin is playing like that. He had time to hit some big groundstrokes, big first serves and he’s very aggressive, so it’s never easy. But during the match I stayed positive even though I was one set and one break down.”
[WATCH LIVE 1]Bonzi led 6-2, 3-0, but was unable to prevent the 2021 champion’s comeback. Goffin earned five service breaks in the match.
“I tried to stay focussed, to stay as long as possible on the court to try to get some confidence, to work on certain things: to be more aggressive, [hit] a better quality of ball,” Goffin said. “At the end it was better and better, so I’m really happy the way I played at the end of the second and in the third.
“It’s a good win for me, very important for my confidence. I’m happy to [try to] defend my title and be in the second round.”
Sixth seed Alexander Bublik also moved into the second round with a 7-6(4), 7-6(5) victory against Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor.
The Kazakhstani’s only previous appearance in Montpellier came two years ago, when he lost against Goffin in the Round of 16. Next up for the 2021 ATP Tour aces leader (840) will be French qualifier Pierre-Hugues Herbert or German Peter Gojowczyk.