Benoit Paire reveals he ‘couldn’t care less about Tsonga’s retirement’
French compatriot Benoit Paire said ‘he would prefer to focus on himself’ than discuss the retirement of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga saying he “couldn’t care less” about the former French number one hanging up his racket.
The 32-year-old Frenchman has been on a poor run of form only winning three matches all year with one of those victories coming on the challenger tour. His last win came in Phoenix just over a month ago.
On the main ATP tour he has lost eight matches in a row and has not passed the third round in any tournament in 2022. His best finish came at the Australian Open in January when he was knocked out by eventual semi-finalist and world number five Stefanos Tsitsipas in four sets in the third round.
Last week Benoit Paire continued his poor form being beaten in the first round of the Monte Carlo Masters by 20-year-old Italian Lorenzo Musetti.
Benoit Paire discussed his struggles on the court, believing in time that his performances in practice will be replicated on the match courts.
Paire said in a recent interview, “Losing is not that bad, what interests me is the way I am training.
“I feel a lot of pressure in the decisive points, a pressure I shouldn’t feel. I’ve been injured several times this year, I’ve barely won three games, but I’m here. I was lucky to have the opportunity to play. It’s a shame because when I feel like I’m training well, I don’t play as well in a match.
“I don’t understand why. I train well, but all the games get super complicated. I still have a lot of ambitions, I’m happy with what I’m doing.
“I’m trying. I train twice a day, I go to the gym. In the end, I play better when I train less. I always hated losing, but now I don’t get mad I don’t win. I don’t know what to do, really. I tried to hire a coach, but the problem is another.
“I don’t want to go to a psychologist, I don’t care, I know that everything will be as it was before. I just need to win a couple of games this year to get things back on track.”
Paire was also asked about the retirement of compatriot and French tennis legend Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, to which he responded that he had his own problems to worry about.
“Honestly, I couldn’t care less. It’s his career. He was a great player, an excellent tennis player, but I prefer to focus on myself. Things are difficult for me too.”
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