World No. 69 Corentin Moutet has revealed he does not watch tennis – even though Learner Tien’s epic battle with Daniil Medvedev kept him up until 3am.
Tien, 19, is now into the fourth round of the Australian Open after coming through qualifying in Melbourne. The American has defied the odds in every round, but his run was widely expected to end when he was drawn against Medvedev earlier this week.
But he somehow overcame the Russian in a five-set thriller which went on until the early hours of the morning. Moutet, who also tasted defeat against Tien when they faced off in the third round, was captivated by the teenager’s performance.
“I really don’t watch tennis,” admitted the Frenchman. “It’s just that I put the game on and it touches me to see a guy like that surpass himself. I know how hard it is, what it takes as effort. That’s what I look at and that forges my admiration.
“I didn’t want to go to bed! I learned a lot by watching his game. He deserves the support he has in the stadium. I’m disappointed to have lost but I’m happy for him. He deserves it. He beat me on the regular. I can go out with my head held high.”
Tien has become the youngest men’s player to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open since Rafael Nadal in 2005. “It feels great,” he said. “Obviously, you go into every match believing you can win. To be in the second week is amazing.”
Although Tien made relatively light work of Moutet, dispatching him 7-6 6-3 6-3, a striking admission from the French tennis star suggests he was not in ideal shape to give the best account of himself on court.
“I collapsed 45 minutes before the match in the shower,” Moutet explained. “I woke up on the floor. Everything was black and I couldn’t see very well. It was strange because I felt ready and fit. I had no aches or pains, nothing.
“I didn’t hurt myself but I was stunned. There was a bit of panic during the warm-up. We did some balance exercises to regain visual stability. I didn’t start the match in the best shape.”
Tien is gearing up for another tough test on Monday, when he will battle it out with Lorenzo Sonego for a place in the quarter-final. The teenage Californian is guaranteed more than £200,000 in prize money even if he loses to Sonego.
Content Source: www.express.co.uk