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January 11, 2025 8 mins

Gaël Monfils has won a tournament every year of his 19-year long career, and the ASB Classic is now no exception.

The Frenchman was in control of the game, the crowd was on his side and he made little errors.

What did his opponent Zizou bergs do wrong?

Former pro and Sky Sports Commentator Lee Radovanovic talks with Piney about how the match, and what tournament organisers could do better next year.

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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Weekend Sport Podcast with Jason Vine
from Newstalks EDB.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Championship point.

Speaker 1 (00:16):
For galmon Face.

Speaker 2 (00:21):
Finally, Gal moon Face masters the ASP Classic. It's Lucky
number thirteen at Stanley Street.

Speaker 3 (00:35):
There Frenchman gamontfisis Ion Auckland's ASB Tennis Classic for the
very first time, beating Belgian qualifier ziezu Bergh's sixty three
sixty fourth in just over an hour and a half
yesterday to take the crown. Montfeast broke Berg's serve early
in both sets to allow him to control the match.
It's his thirteenth ATP Tour title and he becomes the

(00:58):
oldest player to win on the tour since it began
in nineteen ninety, at the ripe old age of thirty eight.
Former pro Lee Radovanovitch was watching on as part of
Sky Sports commentary team. He joins us, now, thanks for
joining us two days in a row lead to review
this one. Now. Did go mon Feast always look in

(01:19):
control of the final?

Speaker 4 (01:21):
He did. He seemed in control from the first point
in the first game. I think when we spoke yesterday
I mentioned that this might be another day at the
office for mon Feast, because you know, he's been in
seventy three semifinals, he's been into semifinals of Grand Slams,
He's won a tournament every year of his nineteen year career.

(01:42):
He just came out right from the start founders range.
He was composed, didn't make many errors, so he can't
well not kind of. He absolutely put in a flawless performance.

Speaker 3 (01:55):
Was Zizuberg's in any way to your eye overrared by
the occasion, He's only just arrived after all.

Speaker 4 (02:02):
Yeah, so I said in the build up, he's got
the game to beat mon Feest. It was quite a
good matchup for him in terms of how they operate
technically and physically. But being that it was his first final,
he wasn't able to just find the mental focus for
him to be able to allow himself to play his
best tennis like we had seen in the previous five

(02:23):
matches to the two qualifying matches plus around a thirty
two quarterfinal semifinal. He was in the zone in the final.
He was battling with himself mentally. You could see it.
He was frustrated at times because the forehand wings his
which is his weapon, let him down from memory. He
might have been nineteen or twenty unforced erahs on that forehand,

(02:46):
and every time he had a half chance, it felt
like he missed that forehand. So when your best SHOT's
not going for you and you're mentally struggling with yourself,
it's very difficult.

Speaker 3 (02:57):
Is the improvement of mental focus as a tennis pluer
something that can only come with experience.

Speaker 4 (03:05):
I'd say generally yes, but sometimes no. Because we've had
three nineteen year olds here this week who have done really,
really well and are inside the world's top fifty, So
some of the guys can be where they need to
be right away. Bergs is twenty five years old, and
if you were his coach, you would say that was

(03:26):
the one thing that he needs to improve on to
get into the world's top twenty, top thirty, something like that.
Just stay on task, stay focused, don't get frustrated with
the crowd, focused on what you're doing, and try and
win as many points as you can. One of the
issues for him yesterday was he would play one good
point and he followed that up with a loose point.
He wasn't able to string four or five points together

(03:48):
in a row, where Montfeese was able to just keep
the ball on the court, allow the Belgian play to
self destructed make errors.

Speaker 3 (03:57):
Whose side was the crowd on yesterday, I think definitely Montfee.

Speaker 4 (04:03):
I mean the crowd was loving it, even though it
doesn't like it was tight on the score line, you
can feel the intensity of the match. Monte's absolutely the
crowd favorite. They loved it when he won. He had
a huge celebration and a couple of really long post
match interviews and speeches. He's a craft favorite of the

(04:23):
way that he plays. He's got shot the players don't
generally try. He throws in the cheeky drop shot from
a place where he shouldn't really be doing that. Or
he's got a big fourhand on the run out of
the blue that the crowd just gets up off the
seats for.

Speaker 3 (04:38):
And you mentioned yesterday that he doesn't need the money anymore.
Does He doesn't need the agulation, He doesn't need to
do anything for a sense of achievement anymore. He's he's
pretty much done at all. Do you sense that, you know,
just a joy of the game of tennis, if there
is such a thing at this.

Speaker 4 (04:51):
Level, I think so. Yeah. I think he's got to
that point where he knows he's not going to be
a Grand Slam winner, but he's won thirty six million
in prize money, so he's just fine. He's playing because
he loves it, and he's you know, getting another offer,
shoot into one. Another tournament means the world to him.
And he's just played in a care free fashion out

(05:13):
there on set Accord in the final, composed, more than
comfortable in that space that he was.

Speaker 3 (05:18):
In a report on the Herald this morning, Rada, you
may have seen it and have no doubt her talk
of this a development of the venue with a roof plan.
That's the ambition of the organizers to help future proof
the event, make a bigger better take. Whether out of
the equation of course, is there something that almost has
to happen if this tournament is to continue on an

(05:40):
upward trajectory.

Speaker 4 (05:42):
I certainly have to happen. You know, that's a fairly
old center there, and they do a really good job
to pull it all together. But you know, I don't
take the organizers might be saying there's a lot of scaffolding,
a lot of piecemealing going on around the stadium. I
think that as imperative they do it. Hopefully they can

(06:03):
get the money. I believe they're on their way towards
doing that. I believe they have consent to do it.
One interesting thing is one factor redoing the stadium is
that some of the players complain that the distance between
the baseline and the back fence is too short because
as men's tennis is changing over the years, players are

(06:24):
playing further further behind the baseline, so they need to
link to that to make more space between the baseline
and that fence. Is kind of interesting.

Speaker 3 (06:35):
Yeah, that is there a well, there must I'm sure
there's a there's a you know, a minimum that's allowed.
But what I mean what a player say, we'll apply
look at it and say, well, I won't come a
play in Auckland unless there's more room for me behind
the baseline.

Speaker 4 (06:48):
Oh yeah, absolutely, yep. Because most of the other or
a lot of the other stadiums or courts around the
world are probably newer, so they've got more room. You know,
they've got the clay quarters, the out and out clay quarters.
They want to be three, four or five meters behind
the baseline. They don't want to be up close because
it's not not where they're comfort zoners. So look a
short story. Yes, they need to read to the stadium.

(07:10):
Hopefully they can get it done. And I'm sure this
tournament sold out every single year. It's so popular people
come back year after year. I'm sure if they can
increase capacity, they'll sell that out, no problem, because there'll
be such great quality.

Speaker 3 (07:23):
Indeed, and just finally, Ossie Open starts today, you will
be I guess on your couch. You're certainly keeping an
eye on things for the next two weeks or so
as time permits. A Yanick Center arena, Sabolenka defending champions,
top seeds. Do they appeal to you as firm favorites
for the next couple of weeks?

Speaker 4 (07:40):
She does. Sabalinka for sure is a firm favorite for me,
no doubt. I actually think she'll get that done. She's
in great form physically, just such a weapon and sinner.
I would say, you've got you've got two options, the
Yannick Center or our cras. I think of the two
standout players that will see go deep into the week,
I would love to see that Djokovic go on a

(08:02):
run and get deep. I'm sure he'll go close, but
I don't know. I really want to, Yeah, I don't
know that he's got another Grand Slam left, Adam. These
younger guys that are coming through are now making him
look just a half a step slow, which is why
he hasn't been winning the big ones. Yeah.

Speaker 3 (08:19):
Well the headlines there isn't it twenty five and twenty five.
Whether it gets written or not over the next couple
of weeks, I guess remains to be seen. Lee, great
to chat tennis with you as always, Thanks for taking
the time. Cheers, Thank you mate. That's Lee Radovanovitch, former
pro now Sky Sport commentator and analyst and a good
friend of the show. I always enjoy talking tennis with
rado So Gamon Feast at the age of thirty eight,

(08:41):
winning his first ASB Tennis Classic yesterday.

Speaker 1 (08:43):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live
to News Talk zed B weekends from midday or follow
the podcast on iHeartRadio.
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