One-on-one with Josselin Ouanna - 法網 Tennis

One-on-one with Josselin Ouanna

Long overshadowed by compatriots Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga,
Josselin Ouanna finally appears ready to claim his rightful place among the
French tennis elite.

For a long time Josselin Ouanna was almost invisible. Naturally shy, he was
like an introverted teenager who dared not look anyone in the eye.

New attitude

Times have changed. Ouanna pulled off his t-shirt, showing off his bare chest
for our camera, a symbolic gesture for a player who is almost sure of himself
now, and increasingly confident of his physique and his strength.

It is also the type of attitude the 23-year-old has begun to display on court
as he takes his game to the next level. Take Sunday, for example, when the
136 world-ranked Ouanna took a more aggressive approach than usual against
Spain’s Marcel Granollers, a player fully 40 points higher than him in the
rankings. The new and improved “Joss” went on to win his first Grand Slam
match. In five sets no less.

Reminiscences

Still visibly moved after watching the match, Ouanna’s first coach Fabrice
Loustalot spoke to the press about his former protégé’s transformation. “
Joss has changed his attitude. He’s really developed his character. During
the match he showed some emotion, pumped his fists. It was beautiful to
watch. Perhaps that’s what was missing from his game.” Loustalot trained
Ouanna from the ages of 7 and 13 and remembers him as a “super talented boy
who was extremely shy and almost never spoke.”

Ouanna is clearly coming into his own then. A victory at the Rennes
challenger, followed by a quarter-final spot in Lyon, are proof of a
burgeoning talent. Joss himself commented on his recent progress: “I’ve
improved at my own pace. I know I have what it takes. Perhaps I had less
self-confidence than Jo or Gael and of course my injuries didn’t help. It
wasn’t easy seeing my friends winning matches on TV, but it in the end it
certainly motivated me to go meet them at the top!”

With the help of his current trainer Jerome Potier, Ouanna is working his way
up in his own way and at his own speed. And when he faces Marat Safin in the
second round he will get the chance to show the world his new attitude and
prove that Tsonga and Monfils may not be that hard to catch after all…

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