Australian Open: Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard – 6ft 8in serving machine wants to go deep in Melbourne | Tennis news
Usual suspects Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are expected to compete at the Australian Open after winning the last 10 Grand Slam titles between them.
Britain’s hopes, meanwhile, will rest on Jack Draper, with the world number 15 looking to progress to the semi-finals of the US Open.
But apart from the established names – of which we can include Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev and Taylor Fritz – there may be a real ace in the pack, literally.
Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard is a serving machine.
The 21-year-old’s towering 6ft 8in frame has helped him fire an average of 19 aces per match during the 2024 season, over five more than nearest challenger Hubert Hurkacz (13.4).
Mpetshi Perricard began 2025 in similar fashion, unleashing 36 aces in his opening win over Nick Kyrgios in Brisbane, 20 when seeing off Frances Tiafoe and then 19 against Jakub Mensik.
That dropped to 10 because they beat him Djokovic’s conqueror Reilly Opelka in the semifinals, but he certainly left his mark ahead of the first Grand Slam of the year, averaging 21.25 aces per match.
The key for Mpetshi Perricard is the slight change in tempo between his average first serve speed (135 mph) and his second serve (123 mph).
How Mpetshi Perricard has progressed in 2024
The youngster from Lyon started 2024 as 205th in the world ranking and with only two victories at the ATP Tour level, but finished in 31st place in the ranking and with two ATP Tour titles.
Mpetshi Perricard triumphed on clay in his hometown in May, over Tomas Martin Echeverry, to win the first ATP 250 trophy
He then went one step further by winning the 500 event in October, seeing off fellow big server Ben Shelton on hard court in Basel.
He also reached the last 16 at Queen’s and Wimbledon during the grass court season, defeating Shelton and Sebastian Korda.
In his epic five-set win over Korda at the All England Club, he hit 51 aces and saved all 11 break points he faced.
Is Mpetshi Perricard a future top five player?
So why is Mpetshi Perricard’s serve such a dangerous weapon?
Former world No. 4 Brad Gilbert, former coach of Andy Murray and Coco Gauff, told the ATP Tour website: “I think people get a little carried away because you’re tall, that you’re going to have a good serve.
“He has a very repeatable, easy movement, he doesn’t throw the ball very high and it comes out of his hand very quickly. It’s a very easy, repeatable movement. I think that gets lost.
“He doesn’t bounce off the ground as much. His serve doesn’t look as labored. For a really big guy, he just has a very light, fluid, relaxed movement. Repeatable. That’s what you see right away.
“Can he hold on? [serve] the ridiculous rate he does against all players and then he does it against a [Jannik] Sinner or [Carlos] Alcaraz?
“If he then manages to go from 10 percent breaking to 15, 17 percent and keep where he is on the serve, he is certainly among the top five.”
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