"The first set was very intense," admits Mpetshi Perricard after his win against Basilashvili

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard took advantage of Nikoloz Basilashvili's withdrawal to advance to the quarterfinals in Brussels.

Mpetshi Perricard will indeed be present for the quarterfinals of the ATP 250 tournament in Brussels. The Frenchman, who had beaten Emil Ruusuvuori in three sets in his opening match, benefited from Basilashvili's withdrawal on Thursday, who suffered a shoulder injury at the end of the first set, to qualify for the next round of the tournament.

Before facing his nemesis Lorenzo Musetti, whom he has never beaten in four encounters, the world number 37 stopped in the mixed zone to reflect on his start to the tournament.

"I feel good, Tuesday's match was quite complicated, Emil (Ruusuvuori) played a very good match, it was decided by very little. But it allowed me to gain confidence.

Today, the first set was very intense, I struggled to read his shots, he plays very fast and on a surface like this, it can go either way. I played a very good game at 5-5, and then unfortunately, he got injured. I wish him a speedy recovery, he's truly a very good player.

I have a big test tomorrow (Friday). It's going to be an interesting match. All matches are difficult to win, it's a surface where most players serve very well, it comes down to small details every time. In Shanghai, I lost on Tuesday night (against Rune) and had to catch a flight quickly.

I spent a few days training on indoor hard courts before arriving here. When I got here, I was still a bit jet-lagged, but that's part of a tennis player's daily life. These are the last tournaments, you have to try to win matches, but I'm happy to be back on this surface," Mpetshi Perricard assured the media Jeu, Set et Podcast.