Evidently Benoit Paire has turned his career from professional tennis player to entertainer…at least that’s what it seems, after the Yet another shameful and indecent show offered at the ATP Challenger in Rennes.
The former world number 15 has outdone himself again, with an attitude that is nothing short of embarrassing. The French tennis player was eliminated in the first round by the English Jacob Fearnley with a score of 6-1 6-0.
What may seem to be simply a domination of the British, in reality is the result of a totally lazy performance by the Frenchman. It took the Frenchman 37 minutes to be eliminated: not an absolute record because in the past someone has been capable of doing worse (in March 2014, at the Miami Open, the Finnish Jarkko Nieminen beat Bernard Tomic 6-0 6-1 in 28 minutes and 20 seconds).
Benoit Paire s’est incliné 6-1, 6-0 en 𝟯𝟳 𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗨𝗧𝗘𝗦 contre Jacob Fearnley au premier tour du Challenger de Rennes. 😳🇫🇷
Le Français a lancé des baisers au public après avoir été sifflé. pic.twitter.com/RMOKVutlsf
— Univers Tennis 🎾 (@UniversTennis) September 11, 2024
An attitude that continued even at the end of the match. In fact, when leaving the court, the 35-year-old from Avignon was obviously booed for his disrespectful performance. In response to the crowd, Paire left the court sending them polemical kisses, almost to mock them. When he arrived in the locker room, the Frenchman immediately posted three smiling emojis on his X profile, continuing with his attitude.
Participation in the French challenger should have guaranteed him $1200 for participation, but most likely, given his lazy behavior, Paire will soon be fined for lack of effort and forced to return the prize received.
Throughout the French tennis player’s career, the antics and disrespect have far outweighed the quality play of a player with extraordinary flair and technique, but with a mentality that is as far removed as possible from that which anyone who practices this sport should have.