One-on-one with Roger Rasheed

Roger Rasheed, who has been coaching Gael Monfils for the past two months, confirmed on Sunday that the French star is indeed fit to play in this year’s French Open. The stocky Australian who used to work with countryman Lleyton Hewitt is by nature a fighter and expects the same battling attitude from his new protege. No11 seed Monfils was looking for new input, and after an unsettled period where he changed coach every five minutes (or so it seemed!), he has found what he was looking for in Rasheed. The Australian has designed an “educational programme” for the laid-back Guadeloupe native and provided him with the stability he craved. A semi-finalist here last year, Monfils will take to the court on Tuesday with not only his nation’s expectations but also the pressure of an injured leg to contend with. Rasheed assures us “he’s ready”. The partnership between the pair, though still in its infancy, seems to be going smoothly, which bodes well both for the Frenchman and for his ambitious coach. "I’m trying to teach him how to keep battling to the very end and am not in the least bit surprised by his attitude," Rasheed explains. “He’s a fighter and he knew exactly what to expect when he asked to work with me. He had been warned!” More than just a coach The current French No3 has been battling with injury since his loss against Gilles Simon in the Round of 16 at the Australian Open, meaning that the initial Rasheed game plan - “use his strengths better and learn to bring just the right amount of aggression to his game” – had to be put on hold. These are tough times for Monfils and improvements in his technical and tactical game will have to wait until he has regained full fitness. “Injuries are a part of a professional athlete’s life. Any player would be disappointed and frustrated to be off the court. It’s even worse for Gael since this setback came after he reached No9 in the world and goodness knows what a great season he could have had on clay without the injury,” Rasheed continues. “As a coach you also have to play the role of psychologist. It’s more like management than tennis.” “Everything comes ata price” So will “Sliderman” manage to return even stronger from his injury? “To make a good comeback, you have to be a fighter and have a lot of character,” concludes Rasheed. “I got that mentality from my parents. When they arrived in Australia from Lebanon, they had to work hard to carve out a life for themselves. Nothing comes easy in life, you have to earn it.” While the coach hopes that his protégé will become a complete player, he realises that he has a long way to go. For now, Monfils needs to focus on Paris – and put his coach’s positive outlook into practice.