Monday October 1st
Some news from Rafael Nadal, first of all, who, whreas the father of tiramisu passes away at the age of 93, is concentrating on his renaissance: "I hope to be able to play in Abu Dhabi and be at the Australian Open, but I want to have played before. As you can imagine, in a recovery like this, there are days with and days without... But the positive is that there are more days with. But the positive thing is that there are more days with it. So far, all the signs are positive and I'm hopeful." The king of clay is never beaten. Neither is Hugo Gaston: led in his first round at the Rolex Paris Masters by Arthur Rinderknech, the little prince of Toulouse offers a first reversal and announces the colour of this last 1000 of the season.
Tuesday November 2nd
First match since his defeat in the US Open final and the end of his dream of a calendar Grand Slam, but also the first tune-up. Despite dropping a set, Novak Djokovic defeated Marton Fucsovics in Bercy and got the ball rolling. The stories of his incredible longevity are being told, as is the case with Vito Perillo, the mayor of Tinton Falls, who was re-elected for a four-year term at the age of 97, making him the oldest mayor in the United States. By comparison, Roger Federer is a youngster.
Wednesday November 3rd
The first cold shower of the week: in the middle of his first match against Alexei Popyrin, Stefanos Tsitsipas has to leave the court because of pain in his right elbow. Fortunately, Hugo Gaston continues to set his world on fire by burning Pablo Carreno Busta in three sets while Carlos Alcaraz comes out on top in a magnificent battle with Jannik Sinner. Meanwhile, two New Zealanders found the biggest potato on the planet in their garden, renamed Doug and weighing 7.9 kilos. Too much, way too much.
Thursday November 4th
Another one? Of course it is! Once again, Hugo Gaston, who was 4-2 down in the first set and then 5-0 in the second, extinguished Carlos Alcaraz in a melting Bercy. Another hero: Alexander Zverev, winner of a cockfight with Grigor Dimitrov, who was close to reaching the quarters in the third set. Now for the heroine: a postcard, written by a daughter to her mother, arrives at its destination 17 years after it was sent. Fortunately it was not to give holiday news...
Friday November 5th
Eight camels, accompanied by a llama. These were the animals arrested in Madrid by the police before sunrise as they wandered around the city after deserting a circus. There were fewer surprises in the list of qualifiers for the Turin Masters. So get out your pencils and think about your next bets: Djokovic, Tsitsipas, Zverev, Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, Matteo Berrettini, Hubert Hurkacz and Casper Ruud. Yes, tough.
Saturday 6 November
And the Billie Jean King Cup 2021 is for... Russia and without any suspense! The Swiss losers should not have the bad idea to take the bus back home, if they do not want to spend a 100% rotten weekend. Because at Flixbus, for example, they don't hesitate to forget a student from the Val-d'Oise in the toilets of a motorway service area during a journey from Belgium to France. The pee break is only two minutes long!
Sunday 7 November
Declared dead while still alive. This is the difficult situation experienced by an inhabitant of Monswiller, in the Bas-Rhin, who, at the moment of recharging his "carte vitale", sees a counsellor tell him that his death has been declared by the CPAM. This is something you should never do with Novak Djokovic, who is never as strong as when he is buried: in the final at Bercy, the Serbian took his revenge on Daniil Medvedev at the end of an XXL match and lifted his 37th Masters 1000. Did you say GOAT?
