Cousins Arthur Rinderknech and Valentin Vacherot lit up the tennis world earlier this month when they faced off in an unlikely Shanghai Masters final.
Vacherot entered the tournament as a qualifier ranked No. 204 in the world and was crowned the lowest-ranked champion in Masters 1000 history, beating Rinderknech in the championship match.
If Vacherot wins his opening match against 14th seed Jiri Lehecka, they could meet again in the second round of the Paris Masters.
Rinderknech won his own first-round match against Fabian Marozsan on Monday, and Vacherot was in the stands to cheer him on. But the world No. 29 won’t return the favour on Tuesday, as he has doubles to focus on.
“No, I have to prepare doubles with Giovanni [Mpetshi Perricard], so I will be warming up. Maybe Lucas [Pouille, his coach] will watch.
“Once again, this time I’m the first one to play and he has to follow suit. I prefer it this way, because it was tiring in Shanghai.”