When he arrived in Melbourne last January, Arthur Cazaux did not yet suspect anything. He is very far from imagining that he will achieve one of the best performances of the French Grand Slam season. Having just arrived from Nouméa, in New Caledonia, where he won a Challenger title, the Montpellier native is mainly fighting against various injuries, and is crossing his fingers not to relapse physically. Fracture, pubalgia, tendonitis, foot, elbow, wrist, abdominals… at 21, he knows a thing or two about resilience, a word that he has tattooed on his skin, as if to ward off fate. And at the start of 2024, this will smile on him to the point of becoming one of the revelations of the year by reaching the second week of the tournament.
“Physically, I felt ready, I had had a good pre-season in training and I arrived with great convictions,” he explained to us when he appeared on the Retour Gagnant show at the end of 2024. 122nd in the world, he received an invitation to play the Australian Open, which he is discovering for the first time. He has never won a match in a major tournament after three unsuccessful first attempts. This glass ceiling will explode with a victory in the first round over Lazlo Djere, Serbian player ranked 33rd in the world: “It was a very tough match physically and also mentally. He was one place away from being seeded and I got through it in five sets because I managed to push myself hard despite the pain. There was an atmosphere crazy thanks to French supporters who came to encourage me in the last round…” The Cazaux phenomenon is taking shape.
“I had a little click where I said to myself: even in five sets, I see that I can overcome physical pain and come out ahead against great players like that. That gave me confidence for the rest of the tournament.” This one will gain a little more thickness in the 2nd round against Holger Rune, then 8th player in the world well known to Cazaux in junior. “It’s been a while since we last met again, but I wanted to show him what I was capable of. I always liked combat sports, one on one, when you’re alone, faced with yourself and an opponent who wants to beat you, I did everything I could to attack him as much as possible and it paid off.”
I felt like we were getting on fire a little quickly for me
In the end, a victory in four sets and a first success against a Top 10 which amplifies a little more the resonance of his Australian journey. “French supporters followed me throughout the week to create a great atmosphere at each of my matches, the media started to take an interest in me. I was not used to being in the spotlight to this extent .” This did not turn his head in the 3rd round, a confirmation match which was nevertheless so complicated to manage… The Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor, 31st in the world, fell in three sets and less than two hours of play. “I felt he was tired, I was very consistent and very comfortable serving, the basics retained from previous matches.” A result far from trivial: he thus became the first foreign player invited to Australia to reach the second week of the Australian tournament since Mats Wilander thirty years earlier.
“I was ready”: Cazaux drunk with pride after his “big fight” won against Rune
Video credit: Eurosport
From these small stones, Arthur built a beautiful building which impressed Melbourne, even if his adventure then ended against Hubert Hurkacz in the round of 16. He, who is of the same generation as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, is not close to their peaks, but the foundations built in Australia have given him solid references. “There was clearly a before and after of the Australian Open. I learned a lot about this tournament and it will remain one of my biggest memories for the moment in tennis. From the media, I felt a excitement around me which made me happy, but I had the impression that people were getting excited a little quickly for me. There are so many players in front of me: Alcaraz, Sinner who are the same age as me and who! are 20 times stronger and which have proven it 20 times more… I like being in the light, but the rest showed me that tennis is made of ups and downs. I got the direct backlash…”.
There are so many players in front of me: Alcaraz, Sinner who are the same age as me and who are 20 times stronger and who have proven it 20 times more
And that’s an understatement to say. In Miami, a few weeks later, he felt unwell due to the heat in the first round of qualifying. Then in Barcelona, it was his ankle that suffered once again. Injury from which he will take several months to truly recover… until October with a challenger final in China and especially a 3rd round at the Masters 1000 at Paris-Bercy: after benefiting from Jannik Sinner’s package, he recalled the good memories of French supporters by dominating Ben Shelton, 19th in the world, in the 2nd round. A coup of strength of which he has the secret.
Cazaux, from miraculous draftee to magnificent qualifier: images of his victory over Shelton
Video credit: Eurosport
Now followed by coach Sam Sumyk, after having been in the federal fold for a long time, Arthur Cazaux knows that he can invite himself to the table of the big ones: down to 80th place in the world, the Montpeliérain is aiming for an entry into the Top 30 in the world . Without injury and with consistency at the highest level, no choice. For his return to his roots, Cazaux was placed at the bottom of the table for the 2025 Australian Open. He will have the Argentinian Sebastian Baez, 28th in the world, facing him for the first time.
A first round to negotiate before two matches of a completely different caliber potentially against the Australian Nick Kyrgios in the second round and the German Alexander Zverev, seeded n°2, in the third. “I think I might do two or three things differently the next time if the light comes back on me like that. But I know that it can just as quickly go the other way so you have to keep your feet on the ground.” This is the opportunity to show it again.
