Benoit Paire, 33, reveals he has given up on alcohol and parties as he is now much more professional and wants to go out in a positive way. Paire, a three-time ATP champion and a former top-20 player, indicated on many occasions over the last several years that he wasn’t really enjoying tennis.
Paire, who is now ranked at No 177 in the world, suggests his love and joy for the game are returning as he wants to make a positive story before he ends his professional career. “I have refocused on the important things.
I decided to be more professional, not to go out to night parties and stop drinking alcohol. I want to do my best and that sometimes makes me anxious, because I know that right now it is impossible. The French public has a lot of expectations around me and that generates extra pressure on me, but I think that little by little I will be able to respond to that,” Paire said, per the Daily Express.
Paire on winning his Brest Challenger opener
On Wednesday, Paire made a winning start at the Brest Challenger, beating Duje Ajdukovic 7-6 (5) 6-3. That win alone may not be too much, but Paire says it’s a positive step in what he is trying to accomplish.
“I’m going to take it game by game. I used to come to tournaments to win money and see what would happen, but now I see each event as a little step up. I’ve trained hard on a physical level, I’ve done very demanding tests and my legs are back.
function at full capacity. I feel that now is the time. I know that I have been trying before, but not with this conviction because I did not have the mind in the necessary disposition to compete. Tennis had become an obligation, almost a punishment.
I know it’s difficult for people to understand, because we are privileged to dedicate ourselves to this, but that’s how I felt,” Paire explained. On the main level, Paire hasn’t impressed this year as he is just 4-22. It remains to be seen if Paire can rediscover his top tennis and return to the top-50 in the world.
