Picture Credit: Twitter
Frenchman Hugo Gaston won a thrilling five-setter against Alex de Minaur on Tuesday. After lagging early in the match, 6-4, Gaston bounced back by winning the following sets 6-2, 6-3 against the 19th seeded Minaur. However, Minaur stormed back vigorously in the fourth set, 6-0, as he displayed dominating performance to take the match to a tie-breaker.
While fans were delighted to see a thrilling contest between both the players, Gaston was at the receiving end of most of the cheers and applause. After winning the first two sets, Frenchman slipped in the fourth set entirely as his opponent scored 9 points in a row to lead the contest 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 0-6, 0-3.
Furious with himself, Gaston broke his racket in rage at the change of sides. He used all the support from the fans taking the match into a final-set tiebreak. He surprised the tenth seeded 10-4 in the tie-breaker to make the evening memorable. Moments after Gaston won the game, a packed crowd at the iconic court joined him in wishing his girlfriend, Laetitia, on her birthday.
During his post-match on-court interview, the local star pointed toward his girlfriend, who was in the players' box, and informed everyone in attendance that she was celebrating her birthday. In a lovely moment, he then began to sing for her, and the happy fans on Court Suzanne Lenglen made Laetitia's day even more special by singing along. The video of the same instantly went viral and was widely circulated on social media.
"It's incredible; you pushed me; this victory is for you," said the Frenchman to the public. "Thank you. It was very hard. He is an outstanding player, but I knew that I could annoy him with the variation of my game. I am very happy; I drew deep within myself," he concluded.
Gaston will now face unseeded Argentine Pedro Cachin in the second round. Riding high on confidence after defeating a player much higher in the standings, Gaston will look to continue his momentum in the French Open. The 21-year-old has not had the best of seasons so far. He has won just four matches on the ATP tour this year coming into the French Open, but Tuesday's epic win should give him a lot of belief.