Australian Open: the worst record for the Habs since 2005

No miracle ... There is even a certain form of logic that at the antipodes, French tennis keeps the head upside down. Two little turns and then go away.

Of the eighteen Tricolores entered in the main draw of the Australian Open (thirteen boys, five girls), only Gaël Monfils remains, winner this Thursday of veteran Karlovic (4-6, 7-6 (8 ), 6-4, 7-5), at the dawn of the first weekend of competition. Unheard of in Melbourne for fifteen years. But such a predictable berezina.

“It's hard to fall on them every time because we all work, we try to do the maximum. There are some who have physical glitches but who give themselves anyway, pleads the n ° 1 of the Blues, accustomed for fifteen years to play the last of the Mohicans (twelve times in Grand Slam). If the results for the moment are less than our great tennis nation, in the very near future, it will be at the top again. "

Is. It cannot be said whether the finding is alarming or disarming. Apart from Benoit Paire and Caroline Garcia, all the French lost to higher ranked opponents. Among the boys, where Pouille was forfeited, Tsonga had to throw in the towel and the young Humbert and Moutet, dull, could not confirm their good start to the season.

Garcia in free fall

"We must not stress too much because we have a good reservoir, good structures, so the results will come back very quickly," breathes Monfils in an uncontrolled burst of optimism. Because even if the famous Musketeers of which he is a member have never won the Grand Slam title, their generation looks like a golden era which ensured at least presence in the 8th…

For girls, who are only four in the top 100 (Mladenovic, Garcia, Cornet and Ferro), this has been the crisis for a long time. Last season, the French women had barely twelve victories over four Grand Slams. With three in Melbourne, they are in their sad average. The "world champions" effect made pschitt.

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If Mladenovic fell for once on a bone (Pliskova, n ° 2 worldwide), Garcia, she can no longer climb the slope. Fourth player in the world in September 2018, the Lyonnaise seems helpless. And eyeing the Nadal academy, where she already made a winter pass two years ago, to relaunch herself. Whatever your choice, time is short ...