Valentin Vacherot, fresh off a career-high world No.23 ranking reached last week, said on The Sit-Down podcast that he would prefer to win the Monte Carlo Masters over a Grand Slam — a declaration that underlines how deeply personal the clay-court tournament is for the Monegasque player. The Monte Carlo Masters, an event that has never produced a homegrown singles champion, has long been the backdrop to Vacherot’s tennis memories and ambitions.
“It was my favourite week of the year. All I was waiting for was the tournament,” Vacherot told host Scottish on the podcast. He recounted spending entire days at the Monte Carlo Country Club as a child, following matches from morning until evening to collect autographs and soak up the atmosphere. “I was praying that it was going to be during vacation, so I didn't have any problem to go from 9am to 7pm on site and watch every singles match possible, catch every autograph possible, and that's why it's weird, but I’d rather win Monte‑Carlo than a Grand Slam to be honest.”
Those early experiences were made possible by his brother, who remains Vacherot’s coach and who used to play professionally, mostly ranked around No.200. Because he is from Monaco, Vacherot said, his brother regularly received wildcards into the Monte Carlo event, giving the younger Vacherot repeated access to the tournament and its players. That intimate, lifelong connection to the venue — “It’s the club that I've always been playing tennis in,” Vacherot said — helps explain why the Monte Carlo title carries such emotional weight for him.
Vacherot’s comments come amid the most significant surge of his professional career. In October last year he produced a surprise run to win in Shanghai — a result described as a fairytale breakthrough — which he says helped cement his place on the ATP Tour. The Shanghai triumph, coupled with steady results since, propelled him to his current ranking, giving fresh credibility to his Monte Carlo ambitions: a player who is now regularly seeded and expected to contend deep into bigger events.
Still, the Monte Carlo crown would be a historic first for Monaco. The tournament has long attracted the sport’s elite but not yielded a native singles winner, making Vacherot’s wish notable not only for its personal resonance but for its potential national significance. Vacherot, who plays left-handed and is known for a strong clay-court game, frames the challenge not merely as chasing a trophy but as completing a childhood dream rooted in the specific textures and social world of the event.
While a Grand Slam remains the pinnacle for most players, Vacherot’s candid preference highlights how local history and personal narrative can shape an athlete’s priorities. He did not dismiss the value of majors — “Of course, I wouldn't mind winning a Grand Slam. It’s just really special.” — but underscored that some trophies carry a different, more intimate meaning.
As the ATP season progresses and clay-court tournaments return to prominence, Vacherot’s remarks place him squarely among the players to watch in Monte Carlo. Whether he can translate nostalgia into a run deep enough to challenge for a first-ever Monegasque victory will be a storyline to follow closely for fans of both the tournament and the player.