With Jo-Wilfred Tsonga pulling out of Nottingham this week, still suffering from the abdominal injury he picked up in Paris, having not played since the defeat to Stanislas Wawrinka in the Semi-Final at Roland Garros. Not only does this put his participation in Wimbledon in doubt, but it could also effect the French team selection for the Davis Cup. Tsonga has not played on grass yet this year meaning his usual preparation for Wimbledon and the Davis Cup tie have not been what he would have wanted. As the currently highest ranked player from France this must put a question mark over selection for the tie. Will he be fit enough for Wimbledon? How will he fare there? Could he go out early or will he manage to go deep into the tournament. All these questions will no doubt be asked by the French Davis Cup captain as the deadline for naming of the team draws close.
Gael Monfils is the French number 3 and could be a choice for the singles too as the ranking points between Tsonga, Gilles Simon, and Monfils are very close. The French have such a depth in the rankings and have lots of players in the top 50. Monfils tore his abductor muscle in Halle and had to retire from his match. He will be out for between 1 and 6 weeks, this could also be a headache for the captain in his team choice. Monfils could not only miss Wimbledon but like Tsonga could be a doubt for the Davis cup. The choice for the captain could be a headache as the team has be named weeks before the tie. Without the number 1 and number 3 players the choices, although plentiful, will be tricky for captain.
Gilles Simon (French number 2) is not a bad grass court player having made the semi-finals of Queens*, Richard Gasquet, Adrian Mannarino, and Jeremy Chardy as the next players down. Grass is not their favorite surface, and they have had differing results but mostly falling in the first or 2nd round. If both Tsonga and Monfils are discounted due to injury, then it appears that the Davis Cup team likely to face GB at home on grass would be Gilles Simon and Richard Gasquet in the singles. If the captain goes with rankings then these would be the players to take along if Tsonga and Monfils are not fit. The French will be hoping that Tsonga and Monfils recover in time for the tie, as you always want to take your highest ranking or best performers available to any Davis Cup tie.
*Simon plays the first semi final at Queens 20/06/2015 at 13.15 BST