Hugo Gaston looks to play his part in Tennis Premier League after “a good long year”

World No. 76 Hugo Gaston of France will play for the Chennai Smashers along with Conny Perrin of Switzerland and India’s Rithvik Bollipalli in the Tennis Premier League this season.

FILE PHOTO: Frenchman Hugo Gaston will play for Chennai Smashers in the upcoming season of the Tennis Premier League. | Photo Credit: GETTY IMAGES

Hugo Gaston has been one of the brightest players in the world of tennis.

The 24-year-old Frenchman was World No. 2 as a junior in 2018. Two years later, playing his first French Open at the Roland Garros, Gaston beat Stan Wawrinka in the third round in five sets. It took Dominik Thiem five sets to beat Gaston in the fourth round. Thiem went on to win the US Open later that year.

Quite excited about playing the Tennis Premier League (TPL) to be staged at the Cricket Club of India (CCI) in Mumbai, and particularly enthused with the 25-point format, Gaston was candid in admitting, in a chat with Sportstar, that one had to be good for a week or two to have a nice run in a Grand Slam.

“Everyone wants to win. It is not enough to be good in a match. You have to be good for a week or two. I am happy with the way I have reached No. 75 this year, from being 115. It has been a good long year, and I hope to do better next season,” said Gaston who was ranked a career-best 58 two years ago.

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He will be playing for the Chennai Smashers along with Conny Perrin of Switzerland and Rithvik Bollipalli.

“I have not seen the two players. They have played TPL before. I am coming to India for the first time. Conny is Swiss, so she may speak French. I know that Bollipalli won the ATP 250 doubles in Metz. It should be nice to play with him. I am looking forward to competing well for the team and hopefully we can win,” said Gaston.

He was happy to be playing doubles and mixed doubles in the TPL, as his focus on singles does not give him time for the other formats on the Tour.

“I play mixed doubles only at the French Open. It will be good to play some doubles in TPL,” said Gaston.

Having heard “a lot of good things” about the league from Sumit Nagal, Gaston said that he was looking forward to playing India’s best player at his home.

“Sumit can do a lot of things on court. He is a strong player,” said Gaston who had beaten the Indian in the Hamburg Challenger in 2020, when the latter retired midway through the second set.

He may not get much time to see India, but Gaston hoped that “Sumit and Rohan Bopanna can drive me around”.

Coached by the former World No. 14, Younes El Aynaoui of Morocco, Gaston said that he was working hard on his game, with the guidance of his mentor. “The coach tells me to believe in myself and enjoy the competition, the journey,” said Gaston.