4 days Ago By Amisha Savani
Good things come to those who wait. That’s particularly true for Romain Arneodo . Monegasque Arneodo and Frenchman Manuel Guinard’s doubles final at thee Monte-Carlo Masters against Great Britain’s Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool was delayed to due to adverse weather.
In a break with tradition, they had to wait until after the singles final. Two years ago, Romain Arneodo had reached the final in Monte-Carlo with then-partner Sam Weissborn. They lost to Dodig/Krajicek 14-12 in a closely fought deciding set tie-break, after holding two match points.
The time had come to re-claim what Arneodo had lost. Wishes were granted Lively fans were undeterred by the unseasonably cold and damp Sunday afternoon on Court Rainier III. After the earlier singles final, they weren’t quite ready to say goodbye to the 2025 edition of Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.
Their wishes were granted, as they were treated to a dramatic final, involving Arneodo and Guinard saving two championship points, before defeating Cash and Glasspool 1-6, 7-6 (10/8), 10-8. This was the perfect finale to close out yet another successful tournament. There was much to celebrate for Arneodo and Guinard.
Local hero Arneodo, 32, made doubles history. He becomes the first Monegasque player to win a title in Monte-Carlo. He is also the second Monegasque ATP Masters 1000 champion in history after Hugo Nys won in 2023 in Rome with Zielinski.
Guinard, 29, now holds a 1-2 record in tour-level finals. Cash and Glasspool reached the Miami final last month where they were defeated by Marcelo Arivalo and Mate Pavic. They were hoping to win this and clinch their first Masters 1000 title together.
At the post-match press conference, Romain Arneodo spoke of a daily reminder of his loss. “I come to the club every day, I practice here, I have my coffee, and I can see the wall where the names of the winners are, and every day I see Krawietz and Putz who beat us last time on marble. “And now I will see my name on this marble.
“And really it might seem stupid, but really it’s important for me because I’m in love with this club”. A tattoo awaits Arneod revealed that he had joked at the beginning of the tournament that he’d get a tattoo of the Monte-Carlo Country Club if he won. The idea came about after spotting someone at the club sporting a tattoo with the Club’s ‘MCCC’ logo on his calf.
“It’s very exceptional for me to be able to win this tournament, and I don’t have any tattoos at all, and I said if I have a tattoo once, it’s going to be this one”. This was a dream run for Arneodo/Guinard, who had joined as wild card entrants, and left as champions. Amisha Savani is reporting exclusively for The South African from the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, in the Principality of Monaco .
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