Mathieu after France's Davis Cup qualification: "The state of mind is there, and so is the team cohesion".
Throughout the weekend, France delighted their fans in Orléans.
In the first round of the Davis Cup play-offs, Les Bleus overcame Brazil 4-0, thanks to singles victories by Ugo Humbert, Arthur Fils, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and the doubles team of Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Benjamin Bonzi.
French team captain Paul-Henri Mathieu made no secret of his satisfaction at passing this first hurdle.
"Many of our players were playing at home for the first time. I think we have to thank the fans, who were up to the task and really helped our team.
The group works very well. There's a mix of different generations. I'm really proud of what they've done here in Orléans.
We're fortunate to have a large pool of talent and players who are growing behind us, so we'll have to wait and see about Croatia. But in any case, it was an emotional week.
Our doubles didn't have much time to learn how to play together. And it worked. It's no mean feat to win a high-stakes match like that.
It's a week to remember. The state of mind is there, and so is the team cohesion. It's really interesting for the future," he assured the French Tennis Federation website.
