Jan Lennard Struff saved nine match to beat Marin Cilic 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (9-7) after three hours at the Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open.
Cilic led by a set and a break at 5-2 in his first match in his first match since July due to a right knee injury that required surgery. Struff saved five match points to send the match to a tie-break.
Struff earned a tie-break in the third set by saving three match points while he was serving at 5-6. The German player fended off another match point at 6-7 in the tie-break. Cilic went down 1-5 in the tie-break after a double fault. Struff hit an ace on match point to win 7-1.
Struff will face Sebastian Ofner, who cruised past Mackenzie McDonald 6-1 6-2.
“It was such a tough battle. I was not playing my best tennis, but I don’t want to take anything away from Marin. He played a crazy, amazing match. It’s great to have Marin back after such a long time out. He is such a tough competitor, so a lot of respect. He is always working so hard and an unbelievable role model for the game”, said Struff.
Lorenzo Musetti beat 19-year-old Coleman Wong 6-4 7-5. Musetti saved a break point in the second game of the first set with an ace. Musetti converted his second break point in the third game to take a 2-1 lead. The Italian player saved two set points at 5-3 and served out the first set 6-4 with a hold at 30.
Musetti came back from 0-40 to break in the third game of the second set after saving seven set points. Wong broke back in the tenth game to draw level to 5-5. Musetti earned his second break in the 11th game and served out the win on his second match point after 1 hour and 46 minutes. Musetti set up a second round match against against Pavel Kotov.
“It was not easy, first match of the year, especially with a crowd favourite. Coleman played well, putting me in a lot of difficult positions until the end. He was playing really freely, feeling the moment for sure. He is a great guy, a lot of potential. I had to stay calm and patient to find a way to stay calm and patient to find a way to close the match. It’s a great location, a great city, with lots of fans here. We have everything we need to make us feel at home. Hopefully I can go forward here to enjoy this beautiful tournament”, said Musetti.
Last season’s Next Gen ATP Finals runner-up Arthur Fils overcame Borna Gojo 6-3 4-6 6-2. The Frenchman will face Marc Andrea Huesler, who beat Vitaliu Sachko 6-4 6-4. Roberto Bautista Agut beat Fabian Marozsan 6-2 6-3 to set up a second round match against Francisco Cerundolo.
