As the claycourt season begins on the ATP Tour, Rafael Nadal can be relied on to deliver the goods. Outside of the King of Clay, however, the world of men’s tennis faces numerous uncertainties on the red dirt of Europe, and the early rounds of the Monte Carlo Masters 1000 event showed why.

Two talented Frenchmen, sixth-seeded Gilles Simon and ninth-rated Gael Monfils, tumbled out of Monaco with straight-set losses on Tuesday. Simon lost in the round of 32 to German qualifier Andreas Beck by a 7-5, 6-1 score, while Monfils bowed to Janko Tipsarevic, 6-3, 6-1, in the round of 64. The clay season might indeed be young, but these two results should concern a pair of performers who will not want to disappoint when the French Open rolls around in late May.

For Simon, a decisive setback against Beck, a not-too-credentialed opponent, has to rate as an alarming development. Simon soared up the rankings list in the second half of 2008 by rolling up big results in the outdoor and indoor portions of the hardcourt season. At the end of Wimbledon, the 24-year-old had a No. 29 ranking, but after winning in Indianapolis and reaching the semifinals of the Masters event in Toronto, this short and unassuming performer began to earn the respect of his peers.

Simon’s jubilant July of 2008 was built on the back of a second-round upset of Roger Federer in Toronto. In October, Simon kept the good times rolling by slaying No. 1 Rafael Nadal to reach the finals of the prestigious Masters tournament in Madrid. By knocking off a mix of unheralded foes and tennis giants, Simon–long confined to the middle of the draw at significant events on the tennis calendar–suddenly surged into the top 10, and gave every indication that a formidable career was about to take off. Any lingering doubts about his legitimacy should have been dispelled when Simon beat Federer again at the season-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, and then reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal this past January at the 2009 Australian Open. The same man who, one year ago, lived completely off the radar screen had suddenly become the No. 8 player in the world.

What Simon might have lacked in terms of raw firepower, the Frenchman more than made up for with his tireless court coverage and accurate passing shots. Several months of noticeably steady tennis had seemingly transformed Simon’s identity from “plucky mid-level overachiever” to “regular top 10 resident.”

With that background in mind, this loss to Beck in Monte Carlo–the latest in a series of disappointing tournaments–becomes that much more difficult to explain. Simon, who didn’t reach the quarterfinals (let alone the semis or final) at the high-value tour stops in Indian Wells or Miami, now has to wait a couple of weeks until the next claycourt Masters event (at Rome on April 27). Another poor showing there, and Simon won’t have much of a chance to gain match toughness in time for the French Open. The native of Nice, France, will want to impress the home folks as he bears the burden of high expectations, but if Gilles doesn’t gel in the next month before Stade Roland Garros opens its doors, an ascendancy could end just as quickly as it began.

The situation faced by Monfils, Simon’s countryman, might not be quite so dire, but it still merits close examination as the European clay swing develops.

Monfils also began to make a name for himself in 2008, but unlike Simon, the 22-year-old from Paris threw his coming-out party on clay. At the 2008 French Open, Monfils took down highly-regarded dirtballer David Ferrer in the quarterfinals to reach his first-ever Grand Slam semifinal against none other than Federer. After getting obliterated in the first set, Monfils stormed the Bastille, one could say, and took the Swiss superstar deep into the fourth set before falling.

Monfils, serving at 5-6 in the fourth, had 40-love and three chances to force a tiebreak that Federer wanted to avoid. With just a little more consistency, “Gael the Gaul” easily could have taken the match to a fifth set before a racuous home crowd that had turned the match into a Davis Cup style affair. So close to the equivalent of a one-set playoff on home soil, Monfils couldn’t seal the deal, as Federer ran off five straight points to emerge victorious. Despite the agony of his late fade at the French, Gael Monfils had finally fulfilled a measure of his considerable potential.

Monfils, like Simon, possesses tremendous athleticism, but in a manner that’s unique to the ATP Tour. Whereas Simon and many other male tennis players exhibit a no-frills style of play, the rangy and gangly Monfils owns a wingspan and a body that can support a bolder, more attacking form of tennis. Yet, this competitor with the cornrow hairstyle chooses to play defensive tennis well behind the baseline, uncorking creative shots only when pressed by his opponent. Many critics of Monfils have pleaded for a more positive, offense-first approach, but in the style of many a Gallic athlete, the baffling Monfils refuses to tackle tennis in a predictable or efficient manner.

After his Monte Carlo meltdown, Monfils might want to reconsider.

It’s bad enough to lose a first-round match 3 and 1, but it’s worse to drop such a decision to the 56th-ranked player on the planet. Tipsarevic will occasionally show flashes of brilliance, but the Serbian who lives in the shadow of Novak Djokovic has done nothing to warrant considerable acclaim since he took Roger Federer to a 10-8 fifth set in the third round of the 2008 Australian Open. Monfils should devour Tipsarevic without much trouble, but after winning just four games against “Tipsy,” it’s the Frenchman who is wobbling on his way out of Monte Carlo. It’s true that Monfils knows he can perform on the big stage of the French Open, but it would still be advisable for this up-and-down enigma to elevate his performance in the next month. Otherwise, another deep run at Roland Garros won’t be in the cards for the mysterious Mr. Monfils.

Gilles Simon and Gael Monfils have given France some meaningful tennis moments over the past year. However, if these two top-10 talents don’t change the trajectory of their 2009 seasons, the crushed red brick of their home continent will only crush their own hopes of gaining greater glories in the world of men’s tennis.

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