Bidding Adieu, Goffin Headlines Saturday Qualifying

Former World No. 7 David Goffin headlines Day 1 of qualifying at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters Saturday when he laces up for his final appearance in the Principality.

Playing his final year on tour, the 35-year-old Belgian faces a tough opener against 22-year-old Argentine Ignacio Buse, who sits at a career-high PIF ATP Ranking of No. 59 after a solid start to the year, which includes consecutive clay-court wins over Joao Fonseca and Matteo Berrettini en route the semi-finals of the ATP 500 in Rio de Janeiro in February.

Goffin has a 15-10 record at the year’s first clay-court ATP Masters 1000 event. His highlight came in 2017 when he claimed back-to-back Top 10-wins over Dominic Thiem and Novak Djokovic to reach the semi-finals (where he fell to Rafael Nadal).

The former World No. 7 also reached the quarter-finals in 2018, when he defeated World No. 6 Alexander Zverev in the Round of 16.

Two Monégasque players will be in qualifying action Saturday: Top 20 doubles star Hugo Nys plays Argentine Juan Manuel Cerundolo. Romain Arneodo, who teamed with Manuel Guinard to win last year’s doubles title, will play Argentine Francisco Comesana.

Two young talents from the 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals are also in qualifying action. Belgian Alexander Blockx, who reached the final in Jeddah last December, will meet Italian Francesco Mastrelli. Norway’s Nicolai Budkov Kjaer will face Damir Dzumhur.