Gael Monfils thinks he may have found something to help maintain his winning ways at the Indian Wells Masters.
Following an opening round defeat in Dubai, the Frenchman is back competing in the United States and the crowd was thrilled to see him.
The 38-year-old has always been popular with audiences and he once again showed why he is one of the game’s most entertaining players.
Gael Monfils faced fellow ATP Tour veteran Jan-Lennard Struff in his first match and progressed to the next round with little trouble.
Gael Monfils pleads with the Indian Wells organizers for one thing after reaching second round
At Indian Wells Monfils played against Struff for the fourth time in his career and second time in 2025.
Monfils secured an early break of serve in the first set and that was all he needed to take the first set, the second set mirrored what transpired in the first.
His 6-4, 6-4 victory in one hour and 24 minutes booked him a place into the next round, and Monfils continues his best start to a season since 2020.
Monfils played his match on court 2 at Indian Wells and during a post-match interview with Tennis Channel, he hopes the tournament organizers will fulfill his request.
“Actually I love stadium 2, it’s almost my favourite here,” he said. “I played a lot of matches, great matches, great memories, keep me in stadium 2 please.
“It was a great performance, I felt I was moving great. I’ve known Jan for a long time now and I feel like technically I played him exactly where I wanted him to be, so for me, that was a great match today.”
Gael Monfils next plays Sebastian Korda at Indian Wells
Monfils will contest his second round match at Indian Wells against Sebastian Korda.
Korda is a deeded player at the event and therefore is given a bye for the first round and does not play until round two.
The American has not played since the Marseille Open on February 10, and he has a tough test against Monfils who is healthy and feeling confident in his game.
This will be the first time that Monfils and Korda will face each other on tour, and it promises to be an exciting matchup.
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