Stan Wawrinka has won his first ATP match since February and is now in the quarter-finals.
The Swiss player seeded three won late Wednesday evening 6-3, 6-4 against Jared Donaldson from the USA and will face Marton Fucsovics from Hungary today.
Wawrinka had been more or less out of action since Wimbledon 2017 and had undergone knee surgery. A first comeback in January went moderately, in February the triple major champ retired to the training courts.
“This will be the first time in a while I’ve played matches on consecutive days. I like playing here in front of the Swiss audience, the fans here have always given me great support,” he said.
A week ago in Rome, Wawrinka had lost to Steve Johnson in the opening match.
Wawrinka is the defending champion in Geneva and, also as last year’s Paris finalist, has many points to defend in the coming week; he could even drop out of the Top 300. “Whether I’m 300, 100 or 50 doesn’t change my life. My most important goal is to get back to 100 percent shape. And there’s not much missing,” he told the Tages-Anzeiger a few days ago. “After almost a year without a real competition I have to find my habits and reflexes again – and above all my confidence. Maybe it just takes a little click to make a difference.” He has almost no more pain in his knee, Stan the Man continued.
Since his preparation in Switzerland, Wawrinka has once again been united with successful coach Magnus Norman, but how lasting this will be is still in the stars. Norman will “be there selectively” and “see what is possible”. In summer one knows more.
Vavrinka does not regret his first comeback. “I knew I wasn’t ready. But these tournaments were important to see how my knee would react. The first match was only five months after the operation. And it usually takes a year after such an operation to reach 100 percent. The tournament in Marseilles showed me that I needed a real break to improve.”
Click here for the complete interview in the Tages-Anzeiger!