It's been nine years since fourth seed Gael Monfils last played here, but the Frenchman is raring to go at the 2017 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in the United Arab Emirates.
Watch highlights as sixth seed Gael Monfils defeats Jiri Vesely for a place in the second round of the Australian Open. Photo: Getty Images. Video Courtesy Tennis Australia.
Watch highlights as sixth seed Gael Monfils defeats Jiri Vesely for a place in the second round of the Australian Open. Photo: Getty Images. Video Courtesy Tennis Australia.
It’s one thing to position yourself to win a tennis match. It’s quite another to actually do it. Gael Monfils enjoyed his best season on tour in 2016, ending the year at No. 7 in the Emirates ATP Rankings after reaching a career-high of No. 6 last month. In 2015, he finished the season at No. 24, and on the surface, not a lot of his metrics changed during the 12-month period. The difference was Monfils was far more efficient at finishing the job he started when returning. An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis of Monfils’ 44-17 season this year showed that when returning and getting to within one point of breaking at 0/40, 15/40 and 30/40, his conversion...