Four years have passed since Stan Wawrinka won the French Open and since then his journey on the tour has been far from plain sailing.
A knee injury sidelined the three-time grand slam champion for almost six months between 2017-2018. Upon recovery, he would require an additional three months off in order to continue his rehabilitation last year. A frustrating process that saw him drop to as low as 263rd in the world last June before he made a steady climb back into the world’s top 50.
Fortunately, things are now on the up for the Swiss player, who is currently ranked 27th in the world. In his opening match at Roland Garros, Wawrinka rallied to a 6-1, 6-7(3), 6-2, 6-3, win over Jozef Kovalik. Earning his first win at the tournament since reaching the final two years ago. In 2018 he crashed out in the first round to Spain’s Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.
“I think in general, the match was quite good.” Said Wawrinka. “I think the third and fourth sets were really good. I was putting more energy into it. I was being more aggressive, playing more simple. And I’m happy in general to have won the first match.”
Heading into the clay-court major, Wawrinka has been far from his best. At both Rome and Geneva he suffered first-match losses. The Madrid Masters is currently the only clay event he has achieved back-to-back wins on so far this season. At the tournament he reached the quarter-finals before suffering a comprehensive defeat to king of clay Rafael Nadal.
“It’s tough to really say where I am right now. I think in practice court I’m playing really well. I didn’t find a way really to play really well in match the last few weeks except maybe Madrid a little bit.” He reflected.
“I’m still believing with myself, I know I’m ready for it, and hopefully it can arrive this tournament.”
Known as somebody who plays his best tennis on the biggest stages of the sport, Wawrinka was once seen as a major contender at every major prior to his injury woes. However, since Wimbledon 2017 he has only managed to score consecutive wins in a major tournament once. Doing so at the US Open last September.
Wawrinnka’s next match will be against Chile’s Christian Garin in what is likely to be a tough encounter. Garin, who is a former top five junior player, has already won two ATP titles on the clay this season. Doing so in Houston and Munich. He was also a finalist in Sao Paulo back in February.
“It’s a beautiful match to play. He’s an excellent player. He’s won a lot of matches this year on clay.” Wawrinka commented about his upcoming clash.
Garin won the French Open boys’ title back in 2013, exactly 10 years after Wawrinka did. In his opening match he dismissed Reilly Opelka 7-6(0), 7-5, 7-6(7), to record his first ever win in the main draw of a grand slam as a professional player.
“I’m really happy. This year has been an amazing year for me, so I’m really happy to be in the second round of Roland Garros.” Said Garin.
The upcoming match will be the first meeting between the two players on the tour.
