Struff Finally Scores A Win At Halle - UBITENNIS

Struff Finally Scores A Win At Halle

The seventh time was a charm for Jan-Lennard Struff. He came out on top in Halle today.

By Staff
5 Min Read

By Cheryl Jones

Jan-Lennard Struff did something he has never done before. No, he didn’t swim the English Channel or climb Mt. Everest, both of which he likely will never do. He pulled out a win in the first match on Center Court in Halle early this afternoon.

The twenty-nine year old German player had not managed to win in Halle in the previous six times he has competed here. Evidently, seven is now his lucky number. He defeated Laslo Djere of Serbia 6-4, 6-4 in an hour and eight minutes. His ranking has climbed in recent months and he has topped out in the ATP rankings at 35 after having a reasonably successful year – at least so far. Earlier this month he reached the fourth round for the first time ever at Roland Garros. Unfortunately, in that round, he met Novak Djokovic and the number one player hastened Struff’s journey home to the German countryside.

Even before his successes in Paris, he made a great showing at Indian Wells when he defeated his countryman, the German wunderkind, Alexander Zverev in the third round. The next round saw him losing to Milos Raonic. To quote Frank Sinatra, “It’s been a very good year”. Struff seems to agree, as he was beaming at his after-match interview.

It felt like someone had turned up the heat in Halle today. The weather has become like summer, even though it is still a few days away. Even though the match began just a bit after noon, it was more than just warm. The sun also was casting eerie shadows on parts of the court, making it difficult to get a clear view of what was happening with the bouncing yellow balls. That seemed contrary to what Struff said, “I had no problem in the sun. Maybe he (his opponent) had trouble focusing, but I didn’t.” It certainly didn’t appear to be an issue for either one of them.

It really seemed like it was PDQ tennis, as the first set lasted 35 minutes and the second 33 minutes. That all can be averages to about three minutes per game – very quick, indeed.

Struff proceeded to praise his training staff, saying “It’s hard work we do with the team that is paying off a bit now. We have been working very well for the last few years and now it is finally bringing some fruit. There are very many aspects. It is not all at once, but it is a process that is now going in the right direction.” It seemed to be working quite well from my observation point high in the stands.

Djere looked sluggish, even with what seems to be a fairly slow court. Struff offered an explanation for the slowness. He said that the courts that aren’t covered seemed faster and he thought it might be that they had more chance for the sun to evaporate the moisture trapped in the sod. But that is neither here nor there. Struff won today, and he will be facing a very tough opponent next time out – Russian, Karen Khachanov.

Khachanov is ranked just inside the top ten at 9. He turned 23 about a month ago and he’s a big lad, at 6’6” tall. Despite his youth, Khachanov was married in 2016 and he and his wife are expecting their first child in September. Struff will have to call in all his assets to pull off a win against the Russian. His victory today should buoy his spirits, and hopefully ramp up his game. Time will tell.

The Noventi Open is a new name for the tournament that is by now old hat for Halle. It remains to be seen if it’s merely a change of the guard or that the guard will change. Time will provide the answer to that question, too.

Tomorrow is another day, and all concerned are asking for sunshine. But a few raindrops have never been a problem in Halle since the roof was installed twenty-five years ago. Just a minute or two if it rains and the court is back to business as usual.

 

 

 

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