By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Monday, April 10, 2023

Stan Wawrinka kept calm amid complicated Monte-Carlo closure today.

Wawrinka lost a 3-1 final-set lead, saved a break point when serving for the match and required six match points to finally subdue Tallon Griekspoor 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 in his Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters opener.

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Afterward, Wawrinka said he's set a simple goal: Keep winning.

"What I want to do is keep winning," Wawrinka told the media in Monte-Carlo. "Physically I feel good and my level is quite high. I'm able to beat many players, so I just need now to play my game."

Wild card Wawrinka saved nine of 11 break points in a physical two hour, 26-minute triumph.

"At present, any victory is important," Wawrinka said. "It's been a while now that I feel better, that I can finish the match, and I have no problem, so I'm very happy of what is happening during the matches.

"I feel good in practice too. I am able to play practice weeks very hard. So really, I want to add up as many victories as I can."



At age 38, Wawrinka is the oldest man in the Monte-Carlo field. The 2014 Monte-Carlo champion will play for a spot in his fourth consecutive round of 16 when he faces fourth-seeded Taylor Fritz next.

"It's going to be a tough match. He's a top-10 player," Wawrinka said of Fritz. "He's of the younger generation. He won many matches during the past two years. He improved a lot. He's dangerous on any surface.

"Even if he didn't grow up on clay, he's very dangerous on this surface. And here the conditions are quite fast and the balls are fast, so it's going to be a good challenge, and I hope I will be able to play my game."

Photo credit: Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters Facebook