23 September 2023 , 17:37
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A heated argument took place between Gael Monfils and Felix Auger-Aliassime at the Laver Cup.
The sixth edition of the team tennis event is taking place in Vancouver, Canada, as Team World looks to win the tournament for the second successive year. On day one, Team Europe's Monfils took on the hometown boy and tensions flared during the first set.
The 23-year-old felt that Monfils, who is playing in his very first Laver Cup, was taking too long between points. The two-time semi-finalist taunted the Canadian at the net and got the crowd involved. Auger-Aliassime then complained about his opponent, prompting a frustrated response from Monfils during a changeover.
“Are you sticking to the ATP rules?” the World No. 14 Auger-Aliassime asked the chair umpire. “Are you telling me that’s normal? He sits down for like 30 seconds. I mean, that a time violation warning. That’s not, ‘I’m gonna talk to him.’ Cause I can play games too. I can play games too.”
Monfils then approached the Team World bench and had an intense exchange with Auger-Aliassime in French. Later in the set, Monfils vented his frustrations to Team Europe captain Bjorn Borg. “Honestly, I don’t have the practice to play. If I don’t want to play a tournament, I don’t play a tournament, you know what I mean?”, he said.
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“They call me and they tell me how [the Laver Cup] will be so nice; we can be free. And then I feel like, [this sucks?] because it hurt him, you know, it hurt him. And I don’t want to hurt him. Me, I am here to have fun.” After overhearing Monfils’ comments, a confused Auger-Aliassime said to Team World's Ben Shelton: "What have the people that brought him here told him?"
Monfils threw in an underarm serve which angered Auger-Aliassime during the first set, followed by another flashpoint in the next changeover with the Canadian leading 4-3. The competitive nature of the contest did not go down well with Monfils, who felt the match should be treated like an exhibition. Auger-Aliassime, meanwhile, is taking the event very seriously, especially as victories count in player head-to-head rivalries.
The players had a difference in opinion when it came to how the Laver Cup should be approached (EuroSport)Since the Laver Cup came to fruition in 2017, this is the first time an exchange of this nature has occurred during the tournament. In the end, Auger-Aliassime, who has had a poor season, completed a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Monfils and helped Team World open up a 3-0 lead over Team Europe.
“We are trying to play hard, to compete, but also to have fun,” Auger-Aliassime said post-match. “Things get tense on the court sometimes. You want to stand up for yourself. Only one guy gets the win in the end. You try your best to stay cool but at the same time to stand up for yourself. That’s what I was trying to do, get the energy going and just try to not let him take too much ground I guess.”
Team World ended day one with a 4-0 lead after Frances Tiafoe and Tommy Paul beat Team Europe's Arthur Fils and Andrey Rublev 6-3 4-6 (10-6). Earlier in the day Shelton defeated Fils in singles while Francisco Cerundolo, making his Laver Cup debut, beat Alejandro Davidovic Fokina.