Simon Gauzy created a sensation on Thursday by eliminating Félix Lebrun for the first time in his career in the round of 16 of the WTT Champions in Montpellier. A disappointment for the title holder and Olympic medalist.
Félix Lebrun loses his crown. Title holder at home in Hérault, the 7th player in the world was eliminated in the second round of the WTT Champions in Montpellier, beaten Thursday by his compatriot Simon Gauzy (3-2: 4-11, 11-8, 12-10, 6-11, 11-5). Eliminated by the youngest of the Lebrun brothers in the first round last year, Gauzy (17th in the world) took his revenge to reach the quarter-finals of the table tennis tournament, belonging to the second level in the world.
The performance is all the more beautiful as the 31-year-old Frenchman had never beaten the Montpellier native in five confrontations on the circuit before (seven in total). It's now done, a little over a week after being crowned European team champions alongside him in Croatia. “We are going to play each other millions of times with Simon, so it was hard to remain undefeated,” admitted Félix Lebrun, interviewed directly on the Twitch and Youtube RMC Sport. “Well done to him. Losing to a Frenchman is better than losing to a foreigner even if I admit that I am very disappointed.”
“It’s not catastrophic”
Disappointed but also lucid because the Montpellier resident recognizes that Simon Gauzy had a great evening: “He had a great match,” continues Lebrun. “He played better and better as the match went on. Simon is an exceptional player in the rally. I had to be aggressive on the first balls to be able to dominate and for him to back off a little. That was the case at the start but as the match went on, I could no longer bother him.”
Deprived of the quarter-final, Félix Lebrun will now have to concentrate on the WTT Champions in Frankfurt (November 4-9). “Rebound? I don't know if that's the word. It's not catastrophic. But the level is consistent. There are a lot of surprises. My goal will be to have a big tournament in Frankfurt. A big end to the season is coming.” And to conclude: “I can’t wait to continue.”
