Currently in 122nd place in the rankings, Corentin Moutet is one of the French players who has been on the main circuit for several years now. At 24, the Frenchman reached his best ranking (51st) at the end of last season but after the Australian Open, he had to undergo surgery to treat his wrist. Also known for his fiery temperament, Moutet has made some significant changes to his game to adapt.
Last French player to have reached the second week of a tournament Grand Slam on the men’s side, last year at‘US Open, Corentin Moutet is an atypical player. Very small for a tennis player (1.75m), he moves well and has exceptional touch thanks to his left-handed paw. Following his injury at the start of the season, he made big changes upon his return to the clay court circuit, starting with a one-handed slice backhand unlike before.
New weapon: spoon service
Popularized by Michael Chang notably, spoon serving is not so rare during a match of a fanciful player such as Nick Kyrgios or Alexander Bublik. For his entry into the running at Chengdu Wednesday against a modest Chinese, the Frenchman used this weapon abundantly at times. And obviously, he doesn’t intend to stop there. “I think I need to do more, it works better than my usual service at the moment. So I think I have to do a lot of it, maybe at every point in the future” declared the man who has already made a major change in his game this year by playing his backhand only with one hand.
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A blow that goes badly
In the minds of tennis fans, the spoon serve is often considered a facetious move bordering on disrespect for the opponent. However, sometimes it is a wonderful tactical move that can totally surprise the opponent and it is the coach of Corentin Moutet who talks about it best. “It’s a shame that the French public sees this as a lack of respect. It has nothing to do with it, it’s just a tactical move and we have to take advantage of the fact that Corentin has one of the best touches on the circuit. It is not linked to the level of the player opposite, it is linked to the positioning in return. “It would be stupid not to use it against players who are six meters or even three meters behind the baseline.” testifies Petar Popovic pour The team.
A player in full development
It is very rare for a player to radically change his technique during his career. Corentin Moutet is not known for his great service, it is true, but if his opponents know that he will use this weapon much more often, it will be very difficult to surprise them again. Regarding his reverse, we can only emphasize the courage to go into battle without being able to strike with both hands.
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