Disappointment for Hugo Gaston (25, world No. 96), who was knocked out this Wednesday in the round of 16 by American Nishesh Basavareddy (20, world No. 192). Coming through qualifying, the player coached by Frenchman Gilles Cervara (former coach of Daniil Medvedev) overpowered the Toulouse native, dispatching him in straight sets in just 1 hour and 7 minutes, 6–4, 6–1. A match to forget for the No. 3 seed at the Play In Challenger Lille, who was far from his best.
Making his tournament debut, Benjamin Bonzi (29, world No. 112) defeated Estonia’s Daniil Glinka (25, world No. 171) 6–4, 6–4 (1h16). The Nîmes native, seeded No. 8 and finalist last week at the Pau Challenger, hopes to extend his stay in the North through Sunday.
Droguet the tie-break king
Titouan Droguet (24, world No. 120), one of the most in-form French players since the start of the season, maintained his strong momentum by defeating Kazakhstan’s Timofey Skatov (25, world No. 195) in straight sets (7–6, 6–2, 1h52). The Frenchman has the distinction of not having lost a single tie-break since the beginning of the calendar year: “It’s true that I’m feeling confident at the moment, especially in tie-breaks. I think about it… I was 9 out of 9 in 2026, and now that makes ten. When I go into a tie-break, I feel confident and I think that plays a big part,” admitted the recent semi-finalist at the Montpellier tournament (ATP 250).
The day after his performance against Britain’s Jacob Fearnley (24, world No. 84), the tournament’s No. 2 seed, Frenchman Clément Chidekh (24, world No. 205) confirmed his form by defeating compatriot Sascha Gueymard Wayenburg (22, world No. 267) 7–6, 7–6 (2h03) and will now compete in Friday’s quarter-finals. He will face Luca Van Assche (21, world No. 130), a comfortable straight-sets winner over Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin (38, world No. 263), 6–3, 6–2 (1h27).
Kouame aiming for a quarter-final spot
The round of 16 concludes this Thursday with matches featuring Moïse Kouame (turning 17 on March 6, world No. 507, wild card) against Austria’s Joel Schwaerzler (20, world No. 246, who defeated David Goffin in the first round), and defending Play In Challenger champion Arthur Bouquier (25, world No. 358) against Belgium’s Alexander Blockx (20, world No. 104), the No. 4 seed.
