By Alberto Amalfi | @Tennis_Now | Wednesday, October 23, 2024
The 39-year-old Stan Wawrinka beat Adrian Mannarino for the first time making history as the oldest man to win a match in Basel.
Photo credit: AndersWiklund-TTNews-AFP-Getty
The blue Basel hard court is not the fountain of youth.
Veterans Stan Wawrinka and Roberto Bautista Agut continue to ride revitalizing waves at the Swiss Indoors.
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Strengthened by rousing home support, 39-year-old Swiss Stan Wawrinka broke in the final game edging Frenchman Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 in a thriller.
It's a milestone moment for Wawrinka, who is the oldest man to record a match win and Basel. He did it beating nemesis Mannarino for the first time.
Winless in three prior meetings vs. Mannarino, including a painful five-set setback at the Australian Open last January, Wawrinka went to work with purpose today.
The three-time Grand Slam champion pumped 13 aces and dropped just seven points on first serve in a two hour, one-minute victory.
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It comes days after Wawrinka's run to last weekend's Stockholm semifinals.
Wild card Wawrinka, who is playing Basel for the 17th time, will face another left-hander, sixth-seeded American Ben Shelton for a quarterfinal spot.
The 2023 US Open semifinalist Shelton stopped Tomas Martin Etcheverry yesterday.
Empowered by his victory over Jiri Lehecka in the Antwerp final on Sunday, Roberto Bautista Agut achieved a personal first today.
The 36-year-old Bautista Agut scored his first career Top 10 win on an indoor hard court, toppling second-seeded Casper Ruud 6-3, 3-6, 6-3.
It is Bautista Agut's sixth straight win and sends him into the round of 16 against Canadian wild card Denis Shapovalov.