Wild Card Stricker Stuns Cilic In Geneva
It was Roger Federer’s big week back on tour but Dominic Stephan Stricker has stolen the spotlight at the Gonet Geneva Open. The Swiss teenager made quite the statement on Tuesday by taking out Marin Cilic 7-6(5), 6-1.
“It was a great match,” Stricker said. “I played good from the start. Of course, I was nervous. I tried my best. I served pretty well the whole match so it helped me a lot. I’m just very happy.”
Playing in his tour-level debut, the World No. 419-ranked wild card took out the 2014 US Open champion in one hour and 19 minutes with powerful serving and nerves of steel. The lefty would hit nine aces and win 80 per cent of his first-serve points. He’d save a break point in the final game before closing it out on his first match point.
“It was actually OK until 5-1, 30/0, and then I started getting nervous again,” Stricker said. “I was happy to finish it 6-1 so I didn’t have to serve again at 5-3.”
[WATCH LIVE 1]After beginning the season outside of the Top 1,000, Stricker has risen to become one of three 18-year-olds inside of the Top 500. In March, he won his first ATP Challenger Tour title, in Lugano, making him the third-youngest Swiss behind Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka to do so. The teenager is one of the freshest new faces on tour, having won the 2020 Roland Garros junior crown last year and finishing the year as the No. 3 junior in the world.
Stricker will face Marton Fucsovics in the second round. Earlier on Tuesday, Fucsovics eased past qualifier Henri Laaksonen 7-5, 7-5. The winner of Fucsovics and Stricker will face Pablo Andujar in the quarter-finals after the Spaniard upset top seed Roger Federer 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.
Elsewhere, Fabio Fognini dispatched Guido Pella 6-2, 6-2 and Pablo Cuevas took out Rome semi-finalist Reilly Opelka 7-6(5), 6-2. Ranked No. 102, Cuevas had to come through qualifying this week. Feliciano Lopez eased past German alternate Daniel Altmaier, and qualifier Ilya Ivashka beat Fernando Verdasco.