Amélie Mauresmo did not set her alarm clock last night to follow Caroline Garcia's victory at the Masters.
A glance at her phone around five o'clock in the morning informed her that she was no longer the only Frenchwoman to win the Masters (in 2005 in Los Angeles).
The two women had exchanged a few messages during the competition.
For the current director of Roland-Garros, winner of her first Grand Slam in Australia two months after her American success, the world No. 4 can go much higher.
Tuesday afternoon, during a videoconference organized by the FFT, she shared her impressions.
Would you have bet on Caroline Garcia at the start of the year, when she was 74th in the world?
AMELIE MAURESMO.
(Smile)
I've been betting on it for a long time, but specifically this year, no.
At Roland-Garros, she won in doubles with Kristina
(Mladenovic)
but in singles it was difficult with her foot.
Few people at the beginning of the year would have imagined this scenario.
What does a victory at the Masters represent?
It's a very hard competition to win even if it's less difficult than a Grand Slam for two reasons: the first is that you have the right to make mistakes
(Editor's note: you can lose a match by chicken like Garcia against Swiatek)
and the second is that it lasts a week instead of two.
When you gamble, management is easier over a week.
We have known Caro's game for ten years, we know that she has the potential to go for a Grand Slam.
I hope her glitches are behind her.
She doesn't look physically worn out.
At this point, the field of possibilities is wide.
Hello Twitter, @CaroGarcia just won the Masters 🤩pic.twitter.com/9gXrfbGpfZ
– Team France (@EquipeFRA) November 8, 2022
Was that a trigger for you?
I had been in the top 5 or 10 in the world for a while and I was stalling in the quarters or halves of Grand Slams even though there had been a final in Australia long before
(in 1999)
.
I had the feeling that I was fighting my demons, especially during the semi-final
(against Sharapova)
.
So it's true that this title was crucial in my journey to achieve a Grand Slam victory.
I was stalling when I was supposed to have the capacity.
Behind, I surfed on this wave of confidence throughout the winter preparation and the first part of the season since I won in Australia, in Paris (Open GDF) and in Antwerp.
It was super important.
“She has an extremely complete game, enormous striking power”
Like Garcia, you had decided to move your game forward...
I had already set it up at the beginning of the year with ups and downs.
The American tour hadn't been very good, I won few games per match, I said to myself “it's not working”.
Then I went to Philadelphia where I won the tournament for the third time and that launched me for the Masters in Los Angeles.
There were questionings at the level of the game as it seems that Caro had some on his side.
When you don't try to evolve, you stagnate a bit.
How far can she go?
When all the planets are aligned, she has an extremely complete game, enormous punching power, a serve that works really well this season and that she can vary à la carte.
In addition, she adjusted the sights on the return, which puts more pressure on the opponent.
Technically, it's super clean everywhere.
She had to physically move better, and she does, and be fairer in her choices.
She has that good balance.
She was a little shaken in her structure
(
with the departure of her coach
before the event)
but her game is clear in her head and she knows how to press on what she did in New York.
This is a fine proof of mental capacity.
Caroline Garcia's 2022 season... ✨
▪️ 4 titles
▪️ 1 Masters
▪️ 1 WTA 1000
▪️ 4 finals played, 4 won
▪️ 1/2 final at the US Open
▪️ 1/8 final at Wimbledon
▪️ 74th → 4th worldwide pic.twitter.com/Y4NV9RNEYl
— We Are Tennis France (@WeAreTennisFR) November 8, 2022
She is already 29 years old.
When Bartoli won Wimbledon at the same age, his career came to an immediate halt...
We're not at the end at all.
We say to ourselves that she is very far from it.
She finds her marks, she seems to have freshness, physically she is well.
Unless it deteriorates from that point of view, I don't see why we would go towards the end.
His success is also good for French tennis...
It's a huge powerhouse for a sport to have the best reps go far in the tournaments that everyone is watching.
I hope it will inspire a bunch, starting with this weekend with the Billie Jean King Cup
(France hosts the Netherlands in the play-offs on Friday and Saturday)
.
It's wonderful for Caro to come and celebrate in France with a home game.
