Ugo Humbert brings home Marseille title in a bit of home cooking

For a few years now, Ugo Humbert has been seen as a talented player who has yet to maximize his game on the ATP Tour. Following a sublime performance on Sunday to secure the ATP 250 Marseille Open crown, he could be in the process of putting those discussions away for good.

In the final, he defeated one of the best and most well-rounded players on tour these days in Grigor Dimitrov. Humbert did it quite comfortably as well. His strong serving coupled with confidence and consistency from the baseline we have not seen from Humbert proved too much to handle. He is now a perfect 5-for-5 in ATP finals that he has played in to begin his career. That is something only eight players have done in the Open Era.

He will also rise to a new career-high ranking of No. 18 on Monday, which can position him well for the bigger tournaments coming in the spring. He can avoid tougher draws early. This could allow him to keep this momentum train rolling deep into the spring and early summer.

Ugo Humbert takes the title at the Marseille Open

Even following this triumph on home soil, Humbert is still barely over a .500 player in his career at 111-102. However, with that being said, his game has never been in a better spot than it is right now.

His big serve, especially being a lefty, is a weapon he can utilize on any court against any opponent. The biggest part of his game that was missing was his self-belief. Watching him play a near-perfect match to cruise past an in-form Dimitrov tells me that he might have turned a corner there.

Do I see him suddenly becoming a major factor at the Grand Slams? Not necessarily. However, I do think on this current trajectory he most certainly can push to be around the Top 10 later this season.

Not every player can be a Carlos Alcaraz and dominate the best players in the world from a young age. There is usually a learning curve where youngsters need to find their way. Humbert drifted through the Top 30 the last few years, but now the game is slowing down for him.

When that happens for a player, your mindset completely changes from, "I'm just happy to be here" to "I can actually beat these guys." There is no greater feeling on a tennis court than knowing your game is firing on all cylinders and you control the outcome. Humbert might finally be scratching the surface of the potential we saw in him years ago.

We could be seeing an early candidate for a 2024 breakthrough player. The soon-to-be new French No. 1 is going to be a tough out for anyone. Has France found the face of the new generation? It's certainly possible.

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