Benoit Paire: Playing In Monte Carlo This Year Is Like Playing In A Cemetery

There are no fans this year in Monte Carlo, and that’s a problem for Benoit Paire. Today, Paire dropped his sixth straight match losing to Jordan Thompson 6-4, 6-7(3), 7-6(5).

After the loss, Paire continued to express his hatred of playing under COVID conditions, and with no fans.

“I have nothing to expect,” Paire said. “I just don’t care. There’s no magic. What is the pleasure playing like this? Of course, it’s great to come here, but it’s like a practice session. If you’ve experienced the tour and you see how it is now, the only thing you want is to just go away.

“This doesn’t bring me anything except a bit more money. But there’s no pleasure in playing. The players who are there say they enjoy playing Monte Carlo. I respect that a lot. But how sad is this for them? Normally this court is one of the most beautiful courts in the world. It seems like we are in a cemetery. Whether you win a point or miss, it’s the same. There’s no atmosphere. It’s the same thing.”

Since the tour resumed in August, Paire has gone just 2-15 with 10 of those losses in straight sets. The Frenchman is still ranked No. 35 thanks to the flex ranking system, but the 31-year-old clearly hasn’t adapted to COVID.

“You’re going to say it’s like normal life, but normal life is shit. The only pleasure I have is when I’m home without my mask and I don’t care about the COVID. That’s when I feel good.”

He did earn about $14K USD for the loss. And now he has more time to spend at home until his next loss.