By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday October 21, 2023
Gael Monfils powered past Laslo Djere to become the oldest finalist in the history of the Stockholm Open.
Photo Source: TTV
Gael Monfils continues to prove that age is just a number this week in Stockholm. The Frenchman made it 19 consecutive seasons with an ATP final to his name on Saturday as he battled past 35th-ranked Laslo Djere to set a final with Pavel Kotov of Russia.
“I still have the fire – I still have the passion,” the 37-year-old told the crowd after becoming the oldest finalist in Stockholm history.
Monfils, ranked 140 at the start of the week, was barely inside the Top 400 at Roland-Garros after missing six months due to injury and losing eight of his first nine matches when his comeback began in March at Indian Wells.
But he has since righted the ship and could return to the Top-100 with a victory over Kotov in Sunday’s final.
It has been a banner week for the Frenchman, who claimed the all-time lead in hard court victories among French players and kept his streak of reaching an ATP final in every season since 2005 alive.
Djere made him work for it, as the Serbian rallied from 4-0 down to eventually level at 5-all in the opening set. But Monfils won the next two games, and eight of the final ten games to claim victory in the pair's first meeting.
Monfils will bid for his first title since Adelaide at the start of the 2022 season.
Kotov, 24 and ranked 109, has also had a banner week. He took out Miomir Kecmanovic 6-3, 6-4 to reach his maiden ATP final. He will make a career-high ranking on Monday (previous: 85) regardless of the outcome of Sunday’s final.
“I’m extremely happy and super tired,” said Kotov, who qualified to make his way into the main draw. “It was my dream to play a final and now it is 2023 and it’s my first one. It’s a super end to the season for me.”
Kotov improved to 13-12 on the season – he entered 2023 with a 2-7 lifetime record to his name.