[16] Gregoire Marche (FRA) 3-1 Simon Herbert (ENG) : 3-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-8 (48m)
Greg : Not feeling great physically. Two things in a row, flu-type stuff. Ten days each time.
The first one was in the US, at the NLF, a really bad flu, just before Zurich, and I couldn’t do anything in Zurich. I had nothing in the legs. I tried to put in some big training sessions again, and it was better when I came back from Zurich.
But I was still too short for the Europeans; I was still missing a few big sessions.
It still allowed me to get a few matches under my belt, and before coming here, I put in some big sessions again to try and put myself in the red, because up until then, I hadn’t been able to do that for a month. And at this level, you can’t afford that.
I’m happy to get through a tricky match today. Even after some big rallies, where he made me move to all four corners, I felt I was still managing to recover. That’s positive, even if it’s still not brilliant!
I fought with the weapons I had today. He’s a dangerous player, a banana-skin match, on a court that was a bit slow, dead, which suits his game well and mine a lot less. I couldn’t get past him with pace, and he played a very relaxed match, with absolutely nothing to lose.
I’m happy I managed to get through the end of each game; each time, I was a bit more solid. I’m happy to have a day off tomorrow. I’ll be able to put in more sessions and more match-play volume, because I haven’t had any for a month.
A big match against Yahya in two days’ time, and a bit of revenge to take. I was 2/1 up in Gouna, and I lost 3/2…
