Gael Monfils to make Estoril debut in April, joining Anderson and Tsitsipas
Portugal Open joined the ATP Tour in 1990, staged at the Estádio Nacional do Jamor in Oeiras until 2014 when it lost the license due to lack of sponsors. From the following year, the event moved to the Clube de Ténis do Estoril in Cascais where it found the perfect home, with Richard Gasquet, Nicolas Almagro, Pablo Carreno Busta and Joao Sousa as the champions in the last four years. 2019 edition will take place between April 29 - May 5 and the organizers have already signed a solid field of players, including the Australian Open semi-finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas, the young gun Alex de Minaur, Wimbledon finalist Kevin Anderson and a home star and defending champion Joao Sousa.
On Tuesday, a former world no. 6 Gael Monfils was announced as the fifth player who will compete for the title in Estoril, making a debut at Millennium Estoril Open. The winner of seven ATP titles has not been ranked inside the top-20 since July 2017 and he will try to change that in the rest of the season, reaching the semi-final in Sofia last week and making a winning start in Rotterdam after beating David Goffin. Interestingly, Gael's first ATP title came in Sopot on clay in 2005 and was also the finalist in Monte Carlo three years ago and the semi-finalist at Roland Garros in 2008. Monfils had a mediocre season on clay in 2018, winning ten out of 20 matches and hoping to improve that since April and the start of the spring clay swing.
"I can’t wait to play for the first time in the new Estoril tournament. Several of my colleagues gave me the best references, highlighting the very friendly and professional organization, an exceptional hotel in Cascais and the excellent gastronomy. I hope that my Portuguese fans and the French community-based in Portugal can come and see me play and I will try to live up to their expectations," Gael Monfils said.
João Zilhão, director of the Millennium Estoril Open, said: "It is with great pleasure that we announce the presence of one of the fascinating tennis players in the history of the sport. We had wished for a long time to have the participation of Gael Monfils, with his charismatic personality and acrobatic tennis, which is sure to delight not only the general public but the younger aficionados in particular. The Gael Monfils is one of the most popular tennis players on the circuit and will surely offer us unforgettable moments at the Estoril Tennis Club."
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2TTjcAs
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