After leaving the ATP Masters 1000 in Monte Carlo, Benoit Paire gave an intimate insight into his emotional world. The Frenchman spoke of mental fatigue on the tennis court and even announced his resignation in the coming weeks.
“I just feel tired,” Paire told L’Equipe after defeating Feliciano Lopez. “I don’t know what to do. “I’m not leading a happy life right now.”
The 28-year-old has already reached two semi-finals in Pune and Sydney this season, beating Djokovic in the second round of Miami Novak, but suffered his fourth first-round defeat in Monte Carlo after Melbourne, Indian Wells and Marrakech.
Persistent back problems make constant success almost impossible. “I wake up every morning and ask myself:’Can I go pain-free today?’. “This pain is the reason I’m mentally out of my depth.”
Paire’s doctors repeatedly recommend that he take tennis-free days. A circumstance that leaches him out mentally. “Even if I am painless, I feel tired now,” said Paire, who seems to have fun for everyone on the pitch.
This is one of the reasons why the unique ATP title holder is seriously considering ending his career before his 30th birthday. “I don’t really know what to do,” Paire admitted. “There are other things in life besides tennis. You want me to stop until Roland Garros? To Wimbledon? “I want to be happy every day of my life, which is currently not the case with my back and many other circumstances off the pitch.”
He noted that he still liked the sport, but had days when he would “rather spend time at home with my friends and family”. Paire was associated with the French artist Shy’m from 2015 to 2017, the separation of the two was in part intensively reported in the French media.