Actor Paul Wesley sounds off on Monfils and Nadal

Apr 22, 2020
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Actor Paul Wesley sounds off on Monfils and Nadal

Published Apr 22, 2020

Tennis Channel Live has showcased a wide array of guests during the extended shutdown of live tennis. Taking a break from players, coaches and experts, Steve Weissman got to interview special guest Paul Wesley on Tuesday.

The 37-year-old actor is best known as Stefan Salvatore on Vampire Diaries, and is currently starring in Tell Me a Story.

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He's a self-proclaimed tennis fanatic, and gave his thoughts on three popular players. His tennis love story began by meeting Gael Monfils through mutual friends.

"I started following his matches and then it went from following every one of his matches to watching every single match," Wesley said. "Then it went to like becoming a fanatic and waking up at 3 in the morning to watch the matches that were taking place in Europe or the Middle East.

"I got hit with the bug. I just love it."

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Wesley had some great things to say about the talented Frenchman.

"He’s always a good guy," Wesley said. "He always has a smile. He’s always in a good mood. He’s also like one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met."

Wesley has taken his tennis fandom to another level by becoming a regular at the US Open, and venturing out to Roland Garros and Indian Wells. He was witness to Rafael Nadal's five-set win over Daniil Medvedev in the 2019 final.

"The crowd always kind of wants the underdog to win in a way even though Nadal is one of the most adored player in the world, but they started to go towards Medvedev," Wesley said, sounding like a veteran tennis expert. "And then suddenly Nadal just took the energy of the crowd, absorbed it and just kept pumping himself up and just turned the tide.

"And then I realized, that's what it takes to be Rafael Nadal."

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Actor Paul Wesley sounds off on Monfils and Nadal

Actor Paul Wesley sounds off on Monfils and Nadal

The final player Wesley opined on during the show was a little bit out of left field: Benoit Paire. Weissman pointed out that the actor's growing beard is starting to look a lot like Paire's.

"I think Benoit Paire looks os much better than me," Wesley said. "He’s clearly groomed his beard. I hope to one day groom it and look as good as Benoit Paire."

Check out the latest episode of the TENNIS.com Podcast:

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