In 2019, Moutet enjoyed his breakthrough season. The Frenchman triumphed at 2 ATP Challenger tournaments and broke into TOP 100. Already at his first tournament in 2020, he reached the final in Doha where he lost to Andrey Rublev. Now, he shared his whole tennis story with BehindTheRacquet.

"I left my parents’ house in the center of Paris, when I was 12, to practice in the south of France. It was a tough choice, even though I wanted to go, I needed my parents but was choosing to be without them. I didn’t know how to cook or clean but I learned. I have always been a part of the federation. I knew that was where I needed to play to practice with the best players. There is less of a focus on school and more on tennis. I knew from the beginning tennis was for me but I didn’t know just how difficult it would be to be away from home. My parents understood but disagreed with the decision. They were telling me I was too young, that I could find ways to play tennis closer to home. They were convinced by my team around me that this was the best option. The first few months were not great. In just a few weeks I broke my leg," said Moutet.

"They had an obstacle course as a team building activity for all the kids and I fell off the tree. I was just there not able to practice at all. These days were long, only doing school, away from parents. I didn’t know what to do. I had to stay there to build relationships with everyone because if I went home and came back I wouldn’t know anyone. It was unlucky. Even at that time I knew that I would return soon and their was a long road ahead. It was just a matter of having to take a break from a sport I did my whole life," Moutet said.

"Once you eventually leave the federation and need your own team, they help you become a better person. I learned from my mistakes during my time at the federation. When I needed to be the leader of my own team, I became more mature on and off the court. I learned to not only respect the players and team around me, but to respect my family more. When you have your own apartment and ‘home’ is not with your parents anymore you learn to make every second count. You don’t have time for negative moments, only good vibes," said Moutet.

"As a tennis player, you learn to be an adult quicker than normally. When you are playing Futures at 16 or 17 you are mostly playing against adults, for money. You see what it is like to be an adult early on. You are ‘working’ from a young age. Other people don’t really start working until around 24/25. They deal with adult problems later. Early on you feel the pressures of winning matches in order to pay yourself and your team. You need to win in order to continue. Tennis has taught me a lot about myself. You’re alone out there and have to figure it all out yourself. You learn to find solutions on and off the court. Even with self-confidence, you have to be brutally honest with yourself from a young age in order to grow up and succeed. You are living in a different world than many other kids your age,” Corentin Moutet said.

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