Issac Newton's third law of motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
And so, after a pair of semifinals that extruded every bit of energy from its participants, it wasn't a shock that today's final was a letdown. Not that it mattered to Robin Soderling, who won his first Masters title with a 6-1, 7-6 (1) victory over Gael Monfils, now a two-time Bercy runner-up.
Monfils, who played Saturday's second semi, started sluggishly, racking up errors from all parts of the court. When his forehand and backhand deserted him, he feebly approached the net, only to see Soderling strike a perfect pass. Soderling kept things simple, serving efficiently and making Monfils hit plenty of shots. It ended 6-1, but it felt like 6-0.
The energetic Monfils was bound to appear at some point, and there were spurts of him in the second set, which went to a tiebreaker. Even so, Monfils never earned a break point in the match, and after Soderling claimed an early mini-break in the overtime, he raced to a 6-1 lead. Five match points to save—old hat, right? But Soderling took the title on his first try, showing how rare Monfils' magic act was.
Paris was the final "regular season" ATP event, but both men have more tennis to play: Soderling will compete in next week's World Tour Finals in London; Monfils will lead France against Serbia in the Davis Cup final. They'll both get a well-deserved week off before their next matches, and in Monfils' case, nearly a fortnight of rest. Come December, we'll see if Newton's first law of motion applies: An object at rest tends to stay at rest.
—Ed McGrogan