Carlos Alcaraz was made to do push-ups by Gael Monfils after losing a training challenge against the Frenchman. The duo are still going strong at the Canadian Open, with both players due to contest their respective round-of-16 matches on Thursday.
Alcaraz has been out of tournament action since his blockbuster win over Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final last month. The Spaniard shook off any hint of rust with a straight-sets win over Ben Shelton in Toronto.
Monfils was forced to sit out at SW19 due to a wrist injury, but he was back on the court soon afterwards, and his run at the Canadian Open has been mightily impressive thus far.
The 36-year-old, now ranked outside the world’s top 250, has beaten Wimbledon giant-killer Christopher Eubanks and fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas en route to the last 16.
Alcaraz and Monfils were captured getting some light-hearted practice in earlier this week. The duo went head-to-head in a close-quarters rally that saw each player bounce the ball on their own side of the net, and Monfils came out on top.
Pointing towards the ground, the veteran then forced Alcaraz to complete his forfeit by doing push-ups while he stood triumphantly over him to watch.
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Alcaraz now faces a tough test at the Canadian Open with big-serving Pole, Hubert Hurkacz, waiting in the next round. The Spaniard was not entirely pleased with his performance against Shelton, but hopes that the outing will help him take the fight to his next opponent.
“I tried to play my level but it wasn’t easy,” said the 20-year-old. “He was more aggressive than me from the beginning to the last ball. I tried to be solid and to get my rhythm and I’m really happy to be through to have an opportunity in the next round.
“This match will help me to be more focussed in the next round, to put my game first in the beginning of the match.”
On paper at least, Monfils now faces a simpler test than he encountered in the first two rounds. Aleksandar Vukic stands between him and a place in the quarter-finals, and the Frenchman is on a roll after his win over Tsitsipas.
“I knew that Stef had a lot of confidence,” said Monfils after the match. “He would try to go for his shots. I tried to put a lot of balls in, tried to hit quite heavy and not let him dictate too much. I think I did it well.”
