PARIS — After Gaël Monfils slammed a backhand winner down the line on Sunday night, Monfils and Roger Federer shook hands. But their fourth-round duel at the French Open is far from over.
Having split the first two sets, they were simply calling it a night because of fading light that was making it a challenge to see anything but Federer’s Day-Glo shorts.
What did remain clear, as everyone trudged off the red clay in the gloaming, was that Monfils and his fine French generation are running out of time.
“That is reality,” said Jan De Witt, who coaches Monfils and Gilles Simon.