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Adrian Mannarino says he identifies a bit with Gilles Simon's game and that's why he "hates" watching himself play tennis. Simon, who retired from tennis last year, was a top-10 player during his prime but he was never known as a really aggressive or flashy player.
Now, Mannarino reveals he never liked watching Simon because it was "a horror tennis" for him. "I really hate watching myself play. I know it's not the kind of game people prefer to see on TV. I identify a bit with Gilles Simon, and Gilles, on TV, was a horror for me, I did not want to watch his matches at all," Mannarino told L'Equipe.
"Je déteste vraiment me voir jouer. Je sais que ce n'est pas le genre de jeu que les gens préfèrent voir à la télé. Je m'identifie un peu à Gilles Simon, et Gilles, à la télé, c'était une horreur pour moi, je n'avais pas du tout envie de voir ses matches."https://t.co/R96aTIxDg6 — Quentin Moynet (@QuentinMoynet) March 25, 2023
Mannarino thought of Simon's tennis as 'horror'
Simon was never a flashy player but he was relying on his baseline and defensive skills to win points.
Also, Simon was never backing away from long and tactical points. For Simon, that style of play worked extremely well as he was able to make a good career for himself. During his career, Simon won 14 ATP titles and he was ranked as high as No 6 in the world.
Simon, who is now 38 years old, retired from pro tennis last year. For the final tournament of his career at the Paris Masters, Simon received a main draw wildcard and he was able to make some noise before exiting the tournament.
In Paris, Simon upset Andy Murray and Taylor Fritz before losing to Felix Auger-Aliassime in the round-of-16. "The goal with playing Roland and Bercy was to enjoy the public one last time. For a match. Maybe two. Maybe three. You gave me great emotions this year, probably the greatest in my career.
We play tennis only for that. Thanks. At the beginning, maybe I should have played more for that. When you're young, you have goals, you think for yourself. And when you grow, you understand it's the only point. I wish I did that before," Simon said.