"Physically, it was a bit tougher," admits Blanchet after his elimination in the third round of the US Open

Ugo Blanchet's run at the US Open came to an end in the third round. Coming through the qualifiers, the world No. 184 went on to defeat Fabian Marozsan and Jakub Mensik, but ultimately fell in the round of 16 in straight sets to Tomas Machac.

Solid in this match, the Czech player left no chance for the Frenchman despite a tight first set (7-5, 6-3, 6-1). In a press conference, the 26-year-old player reflected on his time in New York.

"I played against a better player than me. You can find mitigating circumstances on my side, but he was better than me, he plays really well, he's hard to maneuver.

He's the player I had the most trouble returning against, and he returned the best against me. I gave everything I had. Physically, it was a bit tougher. I'm still quite happy with my two weeks.

There's a lot of positive, a lot of good memories that I'll keep with me for the rest of my life. There are people, here or in France, who experienced great emotions. I'm happy to have lived that and to have given that to the people who support me every day.

I thank them. I also play for that, for the emotions it gives me but also those it gives to the people around me. I was already very happy to play Grand Slam qualifiers. Ambition has never been innate for me.

It's something I have to work on, something I sometimes lack. Maybe the toughest part is coming now. I'll be playing tournaments that are less exposed in the media, smaller ones. It's up to me to find sources of motivation to maintain the level I had for two weeks," Blanchet told L'Équipe.