Tennis. Wimbledon: Valentin Royer, the Frenchman who climbs from clay to grass

French tennis is already assured of a place in the third round of Wimbledon. Both qualifying players, Adrian Mannarino and Valentin Royer, will face off this Wednesday for a fifth straight victory on the London grass. But with very different perspectives. A three-time British Grand Slam finalist and still ranked ^17th in the world last year, the 37-year-old veteran is struggling to regain some of his former glory. Royer, for his part, is aiming for only his second victory on the main circuit.

To unlock his counter, he took advantage on Monday of Stefanos Tsitsipas's back injury. "I'm not doing badly at all, I certainly don't feel like an imposter in what's going on," judges the Tricolore, winner of the first two sets (6-3, 6-2) before the Greek retired . Barely having reached this symbolic milestone, the ^113th player in the world rushed to the Aorangi training courts, not satisfied by the hour and a quarter spent on the court. Because Valentin Royer is "a hard worker, a 'workaholic'", as those around him describe him.

He acquired his rigor and his taste for effort throughout his youth spent crisscrossing Eastern Europe, from the Czech Republic to Poland, via Serbia and the academy of former top 10 player Janko Tipsarevic. "Most often, the guys there don't play tennis for fun, but to make a living. It gave me a work discipline that we're sometimes not used to in Western Europe," observes this son of a retail executive.

Far from the comfort and many advantages that the federal system can offer, Royer hasn't skipped a beat. At 24, he's certainly far from having the experience, let alone the track record, of the best players of his generation. But his steady progression in recent seasons speaks volumes about his dedication. Ranked around ^300th in the world two years ago, he has since become a terror of Challenger tournaments. After a first trophy in Sibiu (Romania) in the fall of 2024, he remained undefeated for nearly a month at the end of last winter, amassing two titles in Kigali (Rwanda) and a final in Zadar (Croatia), lost to local boy Borna Coric.

His prowess earned him an invitation to the main draw at Roland-Garros . Coming close to overturning Colombian Daniel Galan in five sets, the TC Thionville (Moselle) player quickly got over the disappointment of losing his first ATP match. With his 78% winning rate this year on clay, he reached another final in Bratislava, before making a near-unprecedented transition from clay to grass.

The false bounces of Roehampton, the rustic setting for the Wimbledon qualifiers, did not dampen his ambitions. He barely showed a hint of wonder as he crossed the entrance to the prestigious All England Club . "On Saturday, I practiced on Court No. 2, with big stands, with all those beautiful lines made with the lawnmower... You almost arrive on the court and you don't even want to play, you want to leave the court alone," he jokes.

"It's big, it's prestigious, but I feel like I belong. Everyone has their own pace. Maybe in 10 or 15 years, we'll see that my progression has been slow but very linear. We'll do the math at the end." In the meantime, another win against his illustrious compatriot could well open new doors for him. A place in the top 100 and a cut for the US Open.