French tennis player Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard burst on the ATP tour by winning the Lyon Open in May of this year. The 20-year-old stands at 203cm tall and has built his game around a monstrous serve and some thundering ground strokes. He is currently sitting at a career high 58 in the world and is quickly proving that he has the potential to be future star.
Perricard has bought back an interesting game style that has somewhat gone out of fashion in recent years. He has an average first serve speed of 218 kph which is almost unmatched on the ATP tour. From the baseline he hits the absolute cover off his ground strokes on both wings and wields an unorthodox single-handed backhand. When brought to the net Perricard demonstrates the ability to hit touch volleys and has great reflexes.
His game would traditionally be perfect for a grass court, yet strangely he won his first title on clay. Watching him win Lyon was intriguing, it was the first time I had seen a player make a slow clay court look like it was grass. Perricard was hitting winners from all over the court and attacking the net as if he were gliding around centre court at Wimbledon. He is a truly unique player and is going to be exciting to watch throughout the rest of the season and beyond.
Perricards racquet of choice hasn’t been confirmed, however it looks to be a standard Babolat Pure Drive strung with RPM blast. I’m sure his frame has been customized to his spec, potentially with silicone or lead. Perricard isn’t a stereotypical Pure Drive player, his booming serves and aggressive game style would usually suit a more control-oriented frame. However, Giovanni makes the Pure Drive work for him, he maximises the powerful stiff frame to literally crush tennis balls during his matches.
51 aces vs Korda
Mpetshi Perricard has gone from zero to hero at Wimbledon this year, after the despair of initially losing in the final round of qualifying he was given a lucky loser entry into the main draw. From here Perricard caused a massive upset against in form American Sebastian Korda. The Frenchman hit an astounding 51 aces on his way to victory in a gruelling five set thriller. Perricard managed to save 11 out of 11 break points during this match, his ability to stay focused in the big moments was very impressive especially when considering it’s his first Wimbledon appearance.
He now faces Japanese lefty Yoshihito Nishioka. This is a great match up for Perricard and provides him with a brilliant opportunity to reach the third round, where he will potentially face Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard is an exciting player to watch. His game is powerful enough to trouble anyone on a grass court, and he should be a serious threat to Stefanos if he moves past the second round. Don’t be surprised if this lucky loser causes some more serious upsets at Wimbledon this year.
