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Depression, alcoholism, 400 out... Former TOP10 Puy recounted the darkest moments of his life, reaching back-to-back Wimbledon, US Open quarterfinals in 2016 and Australian Open in 2019

author:Le Net Tennis

Depression, alcoholism, 400 out... Former TOP10 Puy tells about life's darkest moments

France's Puy, who reached back-to-back Wimbledon, the US Open quarterfinals in 2016 and the final four at the Australian Open in 2019, recently returned to the media camera to talk about his nearly year-long battle with depression and when he will return to the professional arena. In an interview with the French newspaper La Liga newspaper, the former TOP10 admitted that the contrast from one of the most anticipated rising tennis stars, to achieving great success, to not being able to return to the top ranks after an injury, is difficult to accept.

Puy recalls experiencing the darkest moment of his life at the Challenger in England last June, when he lost to two players ranked outside the 200 and ended the season early after two consecutive defeats. The Frenchman admitted that his "lack of humility" made it harder for him to win and get out of the doldrums.

"I've played the most important tournaments in the world, one Grand Slam semi-final, two quarter-finals, winning the Davis Cup. However, in the first round of the challenge, losing to a player outside the world 200, I admit that I lacked the necessary humility. My psyche began to appear on a dark side and I fell into depression. I drink alone and sleep only for an hour a night. When I got home, I looked at the ceiling and decided to stop, or I'd be like a madman. For the sake of my mental health, I stopped playing tennis, otherwise I would end half of my life in a shelter. When I saw the picture of my daughter on my phone, I realized that she couldn't see me like this. ”

The 29-year-old is the first post-90s player to win the three court types of hard, dirt and grass, winning the Tour five times, reaching 10th in the world in the 2018 season and 459th this week.

He added: "It's horrible because in the back of my mind I'm still in the top ten in the world. You look at Tim and Wawrinka, and I can imagine what they went through. I haven't checked my ranking since last May. I lost all my sponsors except for the costumes, and it's hard to start over when you've been through such a high mood in your career. ”

Puy then said that his compatriot Herbert and the vision of the Olympics made him determined to find himself.

"Last year, 10 days before the Paris Masters, Herbert came to play with me and that made me feel a lot better. When I was asked by the media about the Olympics in Paris, I had never been to the Olympics. I told my wife that I would try to get back to the professional arena again, and she was overjoyed. Now I think about the Paris 2024 Olympics every day. ”

This year, Puy competed in three challenges, winning 5 wins and 3 losses, earning 31 points and $5,400.

Depression, alcoholism, 400 out... Former TOP10 Puy recounted the darkest moments of his life, reaching back-to-back Wimbledon, US Open quarterfinals in 2016 and Australian Open in 2019
Depression, alcoholism, 400 out... Former TOP10 Puy recounted the darkest moments of his life, reaching back-to-back Wimbledon, US Open quarterfinals in 2016 and Australian Open in 2019
Depression, alcoholism, 400 out... Former TOP10 Puy recounted the darkest moments of his life, reaching back-to-back Wimbledon, US Open quarterfinals in 2016 and Australian Open in 2019

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