On the occasion of this 28th edition, some of the players who have made the tournament's glory days agreed to share their memories of the final. On Sunday 24 February 2013, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga lifted his second Marseille trophy against Tomas Berdych.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga: "Magical in human terms
"Even if my best memory is my first victory, in 2009, I remember I was very happy with the victory against Berdych, because I got it in the right way. I was expecting a difficult match and it was a very tough match, where he played incredible tennis and missed almost nothing. In this kind of match, you say to yourself, "I'm holding on, I'm holding on, I'm holding on. You have to be able to stay alert to be there at the right moment. Fortunately, I knew that I would have the support of the public, as I always do. In fact, this victory, like the others, is partly due to the public. It always puts you in a positive dynamic and that's a good thing.
Even if there was perhaps a little bit of a hold-up, I deserved the victory because I was able to stay in the match all the time without giving up anything. Afterwards, the most important thing was not to say that it was the 2nd title in Marseille or the 10th of my career, but rather that I was the strongest throughout the week!
I've always had a great time in Marseille. There was my first title, which was a bit unexpected for me, with a victory over Djokovic in the semi-finals. It was magical in human terms with the public and the tournament organisers. I came back as soon as I could. The tournament is very well placed in the calendar, the conditions are perfect for my game. And then everything is warm in Marseille: the weather, the public. Here the spectators don't wait to see beautiful points to support the players, the atmosphere is incredible. Finally, the record of achievements is really impressive. It's a source of pride to be among all these great players.
Tomas Berdych: "I missed my flight home!
"Of course, it's not a great memory because I lost that final with a match point. But it's a good memory because it was a great match, a great battle, a great final. These are exactly the reasons why you play tennis, to participate in these great events. One day it's in your favour and another day it's in your opponent's favour. I always loved sharing a court with Jo. We are the same generation, we are the same age. I remember playing against him since the U14 category. It's quite unique that we both reached the top of world tennis. That's why it's special between us. On the court it was always pretty even, even though he was probably a little bit stronger in the juniors.
I loved coming to Marseille. It's a tournament that I recommend to everyone because it always has an exceptional field. For me, the tournament fitted perfectly into my schedule. In addition, and most importantly, my game worked very well with indoor tennis, so I tried to play as much as possible when these opportunities arose. And I wasn't one of those people who liked to travel to South America to play, so Marseille was the perfect solution, especially as I had a very good relationship with Jean-François Caujolle. I also have good memories of the city. I really liked the fact that I could be by the sea, even if the period of the tournament was not the best to enjoy it. But when I had a little time, I liked to walk around the old port, which is fabulous.
I remember an anecdote that year, when I lost to Jo... When you play a final, you have to be able to leave quickly afterwards. That's also the life of a tennis player, to find the best and fastest way to get there, so that you don't lose time. Well, as the final was long and it was late, I had missed my flight to Dubai! So I had a lot more time than expected and I took the opportunity to go for dinner in town with my physio and some friends. For the record, I think Jo was a bit luckier and managed to fly out that evening!
