The current lineup of French players won't remember this collective achievement fondly as they broke a 25-year-old record.
For the first time since 1997 France doesn't have a player ranked inside the top 40. The country has had a lot of success in the past but failed to produce any major talent with the last great generation slowly marching towards their end.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga retired this year, Gilles Simon is on his way, and
Richard Gasquet is still kicking around as is Monfils but injuries are keeping him from playing despite a brilliant start to the year. Monfils was the last one holding the line but he dropped down in the rankings recently and that broke the record.
The best-ranked player right now is Mannarino at 42 with Monfils ranked 44th and Rinderkench 51st. Some of the younger guys like Gaston have yet to create a major breakout and the Ugo Humbert is far away from his best. He was once ranked 25th in the world.