"Even during the match, we were both like, 'What is happening?' - Valentin Vacherot recalls 'crazy' matchup against cousin in final of Shanghai Masters

The Shanghai Masters brought up a huge surprise in the form of Valentin Vacherot, who went from not even being in qualifying to winning the Masters 1000 event. Not only did he complete that, but he also defeated his cousin, Arthur Rinderknech, in the final.

The Monegasque became the lowest ranked player to win one of these illustrious events having been ranked outside of the top 200 before a ball was hit. He has now shot up into the top 100 for the first time, smashing that barrier by rising to 40th in the world. This incredible achievement has still not sunk in for Vacherot yet, who took the opportunity when it came along for him.

"I’d say it’s sinking in about 5% more every day. The more I go out, the more people greet me on the streets — it’s surreal," Vacherot said in an interview on the Nothing Major Show. "I don’t think it’s 100% yet, and honestly, I kind of like that. I’m just trying to enjoy every bit of what’s happening right now.

"For context, last year I was really close to breaking the Top 100 — I was ranked around 110 in May after the French Open. I’d started that year ranked 290, won three Challenger titles in four months, and then got injured for six months. This year was different — I made only one Challenger final, but I had four Top 50 wins while ranked around 200. I felt close. Over the summer, I told a friend from A&M that Shanghai could be a good one because of the big draws — even being ranked 200, you could sneak in. I figured, why not go for it? At worst, I’d just get a great week of training with top players. So yeah, I saw an opportunity and decided to take it."

It was a bold move for Vacherot to travel to Shanghai, with him so low ranked that he may not have even had the chance of participating in qualifying for the main event. Fortunately, the stars aligned, and he found a way in.

"When the list came out three weeks earlier, I was actually 22 out. Last year I would’ve been four out with the same ranking, so clearly more players had the same idea," Vacherot said. "I landed on Thursday evening, still nine out, but I knew this part of the season — some guys pull out with injuries, don’t take risks. Everyone told me, “You’ll get in.” And I did, about 36 hours before play started. Even if I hadn’t, I’d planned to play a few Challengers in China afterward. So it wasn’t like it would’ve been a wasted trip — I just wanted to be around that level.

"No hesitation from me at all. Maybe a bit from my coach. But I was signed up for four or five more events in Asia anyway — a few in China, one in South Korea, maybe even Japan. When I left home, I said goodbye to my family and friends for about six weeks… two weeks later, I’m holding the Shanghai title. Unreal."

To cap this whole experience off, he met his cousin in the final. Rinderknech had also reached his maiden Masters 1000 final, with them in utter disbelief in the situation they found themselves in. "We’d joked about it maybe happening in a 250 one day or at a Challenger, but a Masters 1000 final? No chance," he said. "It felt surreal — even during the match, we were both like, 'What is happening?' The whole buildup was emotional. When I found out I was going to play Arthur, it was crazy."

While it was surreal for the pair, it was also crazy for the families who both had links to tennis. "Honestly, it calmed down a lot once we both made the final," Vacherot said. "Our family is huge in tennis — Arthur’s mom was ranked around 200, there are coaches everywhere, people involved in the sport in all kinds of ways. Once everyone realized we’d play each other, they gave us space. Before and after matches, though, it was wild — people sending videos, jumping around, celebrating both of us. After the final, it was more quiet — just gratitude for what happened."

The financial benefits of winning a Masters 1000 tournament is very high, with the 26-year-old receiving by far his biggest pay check. Despite the huge sum of money which would soon traverse into his bank account, this realisation did not sink in until sometime after lifting the title.

"No, I haven’t even looked. Honestly, it was the last thing I thought about after the match," he said. "At some point I was like, 'Oh my god, I just won — but what’s the prize money?' Then I looked it up on the PDF of the draw, and I was like, 'Wow, those are some good numbers with two commas.' I think it was €915,000 before taxes — 20% off that.

"But really, my first thought was about my coach. He deserves a big part of it — he went from coaching guys like Gilles Müller and Pierre-Hugues Herbert to coaching me when I was outside the Top 100. He’s been amazing. Then I told my parents right away, “You guys are coming to Melbourne in January!” So that’s more what I was thinking about — doing something for my family rather than buying something for myself. My girlfriend and I will probably take a vacation soon, but yeah — I actually just bought a cheap car right before the tournament, and people keep asking if I’ll upgrade it. I’m like, “No way! I just bought it, I’m gonna use it!”

He labelled meeting up with 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer as the 'cherry on top' of what had been a dream week for Vacherot. "He was there for the last five days. My girlfriend saw him 15 times — I saw him zero. I kept missing him," Vacherot said. "Then, the morning of the final, as I walked out to warm up, he came out of the tunnel. He saw me and went, 'Ah, finally, I see you!' We chatted for about 20 seconds before I hit the court. After the final, I spent about 45 minutes with him at the players’ restaurant. That was really the cherry on top of an unbelievable week.

"I didn’t even know what to say — I was mumbling at one point! He spoke 90% of the time, I just listened. He said some really cool stuff and even gave me one or two tips. That was unreal."