“I’m disappointed, because I think I deserve better. I’m the French number 1 and I trained on Center Court. It’s my favorite tournament and I’m disappointed not to have played on Center Court. I’m a nice person and this thing is used against me sometimes. I’m happy to have won, I deserve to play on Center Court against Alcaraz now.”
The clear victory over qualifier Marcos Giron and the chance to face Carlos Alcaraz in front of the home crowd did not ease Ugo Humbert’s disappointment, as can be seen from the words reported above in the press conference. The Frenchman did not appreciate the choice of the Paris Rolex Masters organizers to schedule his match on Court 1 and not on Center Court. As the French number 1, Humbert expected a completely different treatment and, at the press conference, he did not hide his frustration.
Climbing the ladder of success 🪜@HumbertUgo sets up a tasty Round of 16 showdown with Alcaraz, by rolling past Giron 6-3 6-2! #RolexParisMasters | @RolexPMasters pic.twitter.com/naF9WNrg15
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 30, 2024
The 26-year-old almost forced Alcaraz to a fifth set at Wimbledon on July 7 and hopes to do something great in Paris-Bercy.
“It was incredible. I was about to push him to a fifth set. After a wait-and-see approach I played more freely, letting the shots go. It will be very different here. The crowd will support me and I love playing this type of match. I knew I could play against him, so I had extra motivation in the early rounds,” he said.
But it is a period of controversy for the Frenchman. A few weeks ago Humbert, in an interview with Tennis Majors, had already attacked ATP, whose only priority, according to the French tennis player, is money. A heavy attack, certainly not the only move towards the top of tennis, whose decisions in terms of tournament scheduling have been much discussed:
“There are too many things and the ATP does not agree with the players. I’m sorry, but I think the biggest bullshit at the moment is the fact that the Masters 1000 have gone from being played in two weeks. It’s exhausting. And they tell us that we earn more, but it’s not true, we have double the expenses. In addition, there are many more injured players. Even if you watch on TV, I don’t think it’s worth it, you don’t understand who is playing and when. The important thing for the ATP is money, but it’s not just that. I had a period during the North American season when I didn’t feel well, I was tired, exhausted, from traveling, from always being away from home. It’s too difficult. Now they are moving in this direction again. Next year, the ATP Masters 1000 in Canada and Cincinnati will also be played in two weeks. weeks. I think it’s stupid, the season is too long. There is no other sport where you only have a month off. I will finish my season right after Metz and go a month later to the United Cup, which starts on December 27th. I won’t even be able to spend Christmas at home. I hear some people, like Jannik Sinner, who say you can choose not to play, but they are not clear. When you are 50th or 60th in the world, you try to play as much as possible to climb the rankings. You have to rethink everything, try to condense things a bit more, because the way things are now, it’s exhausting. After a while, it’s no longer possible,” he analyzed.