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World No. 20 Gael Monfils was thrilled with his performance against Marcos Giron in the Sofia semifinal. Monfils, seeded at No. 2, saw off world No. 67 Giron 7-5 6-2 to progress into the Sofia final. "It was a great match,” Monfils said in his on-court interview, per the ATP website.
“At the beginning, Marcos was playing very solid. I could not find the exit door and at the end I found it. I am very happy as I was very solid. It was a very physical match with lots of long rallies. I am very happy to get through”.
Monfils didn't like how Giron was dictating the rhythm so he wanted to change some things on the court. “I felt in his rhythm he was crushing the ball, so I wanted to change the speed a little and come to the net a little bit and step in," Monfils added.
"Just mix it up a little bit and I think that was key for me”.
Monfils finished the match with a bang
Giron made a positive start to the match, having broken Monfils in the fifth game to take a 3-2 lead. After breaking Monfils, Giron saved two consecutive break points in the sixth game to take a 4-2 lead.
However, Monfils kept his focus as he broke back Giron in the eighth game to level the set at four games apiece. The two players were all tied at five games apiece after the opening 10 games but Monfils then earned four consecutive breaks and won eight games in a row to finish the match in style.
Before the match, Monfils underlined he wouldn't be taking Giron for granted. "Nothing is easy,” Monfils said after his quarterfinal win. “We have been putting in work for nearly four days here. Working on my serve and my forehand and it worked perfectly today. I will be ready for Marcos. He has been playing very well, so I think it will be a tough semi-final."