“I believe that the whole effort will pay off”
Stan Wawrinka has to go through the bottom of the French Open and is eliminated immediately. The 37-year-old is preparing for a long period of suffering.
–Not the old man yet: 37-year-old Wawrinka is defeated in Paris by Frenchman Corentin Moutet, who is 14 years his junior.
Foto: Thierry Larret (Keystone)
Stan Wawrinka has enjoyed tremendous success at Roland Garros over the past ten years. The former junior champion beat Novak Djokovic in the final in 2015, two years later he was in the final again (against Rafael Nadal), in the semifinals the year in between and also twice in the quarterfinals. Tempi passati: In the year of his comeback after two knee operations, the 37-year-old suffered a painful start defeat, only his fourth in the 17th attempt in Paris.
The start-out was all the more annoying because it didn’t happen very urgently and cost the Lausanne player a second-round duel with Rafael Nadal. Wawrinka won the starting set against 23-year-old French wildcard player Corentin Moutet (ATP 139) after a two-hour rain delay. But then he played too badly and served badly, he also visibly lacks self-confidence. After 2:50 hours he had to leave the court Suzanne Lenglen 6:2, 3:6, 6:7, 3:6.
Wawrinka, once world number 3, is currently only ranked 264th, but after his injury break he was allowed to start directly in the main draw thanks to a protected ranking, just like later in Wimbledon. After beating two top players in Rome with Reilly Opelka (ATP 17) and Laslo Djere (59), the defeat against Moutet came unexpectedly.
“I played a good first set, but it wasn’t quite there yet,” said Wawrinka. “And if you’re looking for your game and self-confidence, a game can quickly tip over.” He was disappointed, even frustrated. “But that’s the reality, I have to go through with it. Still, I felt I had the means to beat him.”
“I need a lot of time and humility to put my puzzle back together.”
The three-time Grand Slam winner was prepared from the start that the comeback would be difficult after a break of more than a year and two knee surgeries. “Things are progressing, step by step,” he summed up. “But I still need a lot of work to feel good and to optimize all aspects. It takes me a lot of time and humility to put my puzzle back together. It might be weeks or months. But I have enough signs and I firmly believe that the whole effort will be worth it.”
However, the present looks bleak, also for Swiss men’s tennis, which is going through a dry spell and can only hope that one of the new generation around Dominic Stricker will soon make it into the top 100. For 15 years, from Wimbledon 2003 to the Australian Open 2018, at least one Swiss had reached the second round of every Grand Slam tournament, 23 of these tournaments were won by Federer and Wawrinka. Should Henri Laaksonen also lose his starting game in Paris, the Swiss men would still be without a win after the first two Grand Slam tournaments of the year. And the prospects for Wimbledon are not exactly rosy either.
–Nimble left-hander: Corentin Moutet got his second win against Wawrinka in the second game.
Foto: Thierry Larret (Keystone)
It is still unclear how Wawrinka will continue after the unexpectedly early end. “Normally I will contest the lawn tournaments in Queens and Wimbledon. But because I have more time now, we have to see if we can make certain adjustments to the plan.” He may add another block of training with Pierre Paganini, whom he shares with Roger Federer as a fitness trainer.
Rene Stauffer has been a sports editor specializing in tennis since 1981. Among other things, he reported on over 90 Grand Slam tournaments and is the author of two books about Roger Federer, which have been translated into several languages.
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