A crestfallen Gael Monfils could barely contain the tears, his mind completely at sea as to how he would break the worst form slump of his career.
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The lowest point came following a five-set defeat to Emil Ruusuvuori at Melbourne Park last year. It was his sixth straight loss and first opening-round exit from the Australian Open since 2006.
But where Monfils had struggled so profoundly on court since the tour's Covid-19 pandemic upheaval, the 35-year-old rediscovered his spark from the outset of 2022.
A first tour title in almost two years came in Adelaide leading in against Karen Khachanov.
Now, in the absence of Novak Djokovic, the Frenchman has assumed second favouritism behind only seventh seed Matteo Berrettini to reach the semifinals of the four men left in his quarter at Australian Open 2022.
Some of those form demons had already been laid to rest thanks to his 7-1 start to 2022.
Others were best left in the past.
"To be honest I tried to not even remember last year. I just can say that I'm here, I'm good," Monfils said.
"I worked, well, a lot hard, and just been playing great tennis for many months now since America last year."
Monfils admitted in the face of that demoralising defeat to Ruusuvuori last year it would take time.
Many doubted time was enough for the then-34-year-old.
Pre-pandemic, he had just landed consecutive titles in Marseille and Rotterdam before match points went begging in a 17th-straight defeat to Djokovic in the Dubai semifinals.
Then came the tour shutdown, and upon his return later in 2020, the winless woes began.
"I don't have any confidence. I would like to get out of this nightmare but I can't," Monfils said at the time.
"I don't know when it's going to end. It's hard. Every time I get here I feel judged, I've lost again. I can't serve, I'm playing badly. I'm being honest and it's going to take time."
On Sunday at AO 2022, Monfils will meet 77th-ranked Miomir Kecmanovic, a 22-year-old he had already notched a win against indoors in Paris last year, for a place in his second Australian Open quarterfinal and his first in six years.
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Victory there and he would meet either seventh seed Berrettini or 19th seed Pablo Carreno Busta for a shot at his third Grand Slam semifinal, following Roland Garros in 2008 and the US Open in 2016.
Fulfillment away from his career, including his wedding to Elina Svitolina last July, has been a timely tonic for Monfils in conquering his doubts on his road back to the top 20.
"She has been there always," Monfils said after his Adelaide title run.
"It was a really, really tough last year for me, almost – not wanting to quit – but lost the faith a little bit about tennis, and she was there and always caring."
Svitolina's Australian Open campaign ended at the hands of Victoria Azarenka earlier on Thursday, but the Ukrainian was quick to rush courtside to see Monfils complete a 7-6(4) 6-1 6-3 victory over Chilean 16th seed Cristian Garin.
"At the end of the day I mostly say to people, you know, tennis, it's something but it's not our life," Monfils said.
"Our life is, it's way different. It's like we have so much more in common outside of tennis and that is the most important."