Richard Gasquet has joined the French team which is playing the group stage from September 14 to 18 in Hamburg.
The Biterrois joined Adrian Mannarino, Benjamin Bonzi, Arthur Rinderknech and, for the double, Nicolas Mahut.
In Hamburg, the Blues will have to finish in the top two to qualify for the quarter-finals, which will take place in Malaga (Spain).
To discover
Davis Cup: Schedule and results
On the group of France
:
The group is homogeneous, but in their team, there are differences compared to us, there is a number 1 (Zverev the leader of Germany withdrew this Monday).
All the matches will count, the guys are motivated and happy in this France team.
They keep this memory of Pau (victory in the play-offs against Ecuador in March), it gives a good objective for this end of the season.
We have a homogeneous group with 4 singles players, so it can turn.
There are singles players who can line up with Nico in doubles.
We can play a lot on a composition and the guys are very motivated!
On the new Davis Cup formula:
There will be an audience at least compared to Innsbruck (in 2021) which was behind closed doors.
We should feel a good atmosphere against Germany at home, it's important to find this taste of the Davis Cup and this atmosphere.
I hope there will be French and Belgian supporters!
We are going to feel a bit of atmosphere in these 3 matches and we will have to get used to these atmospheres again.
Read alsoDavis Cup: France-Ecuador, the favorites and scratches of our special correspondent
On the US Open:
Yes I am satisfied with what I saw.
It was good tennis matches, like Benjamin (Bonzi) against Kyrgios (2nd round), it was high level.
Nick has been on a high for 3 months.
Arthur also had a good match against Medvedev (2nd round) even if it's hard, he regained his physique and his very solid level of play.
Adrian, he remains on a title at Winston Salem struggled to continue (defeat in the 1st round of the US Open), because he had matches hung there.
It's good for the morale of the group to see a guy win.
On Richard Gasquet:
Richard was good, he played three matches in three sets at Winston Salem and rebuilt his body with a big match at the US Open against Kecmanovic, a guy who is 32nd in the world.
Nadal (3rd round, 6-0.6-1.7-5), it was complicated but his level of play is there.
He was much better physically.
He will be able to bring his experience, he is able to play singles and doubles.
He wanted to come (he will therefore not compete in the Challenger in Rennes).
It was important to feel his will and his desire to be in the France team with the guys.
On Benjamin Bonzi:
He had settled in well at Pau (victory against Ecuador).
Benjamin has made good progress, he still has room for improvement in certain areas, it's interesting to see him in singles and doubles.
Last year he mostly played a lot of Challengers.
This year, he won on the main circuit, which will take him one step further from week to week by playing the very best to raise his level of play. He is a model teammate, he likes this team spirit.
On doubles:
I have always liked the association of a doubles player with a singles player.
Arthur (Rinderknech) or Richard (Gasquet) can play.
Richard has often played well in the Davis Cup, there are options.
They played very little throughout the year, it was not easy, Nico (Mahut) played with Arthur in Innsbruck.
I told the guys to play more and more doubles and they are doing it, with Adrian (Mannarino) and Quentin (Halys) at the US Open, Arthur with Benj (Bonzi).
But it's not easy when you chain singles and doubles, but it can make progress, evolve their game. It's interesting.
It will have to be done, it is not easy, we saw it with Tsitsipas in Cincinnati, the double at the end cost him the final.
In these tournaments, it
