London (Reuters)
Italy’s Yannick Sener, the 10th seed, emerged victorious in the face of the generations when he defeated Stan Wawrinka 7-5 4-6 6-3 6-2 at Wimbledon for his first ever grasscourt win.
The 21-year-old Sener reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open and French Open, but he has never won on grass in the professional tournaments.
The Italian lost in the first round in his first participation in the tournament last year, and entered this year’s edition after losing to American Tommy Ball in the first round in Eastbourne last week.
But he quickly overpowered Wawrinka, the three-times grand slam champion, and forced his Swiss wildcard opponent to the defense.
It’s a great feeling,” Sener said in a post-match interview. It took some time, but I’m happy to reach the second round here.
Wawrinka, 37, won his third and final grand slam title at the 2016 US Open, and returned to professional competition in March, after a year-long absence after undergoing two operations on his left foot in 2021.
In the previous two matches, Wawrinka outperformed Sener, but they had never met on grass.
The Italian player won the first set when he broke his opponent’s serve in the decisive 12th game.
Wawrinka showed glimpses of his bright past in the second set, and his early break in Sener helped level it 1-1.
Sener struggled after the rain, but managed to win the next two sets and sealed the victory with his ninth ace in the match.
Sener plays Daniel Altmaier or Swede Mikkel Ymir for a place in the third round.
Ymir was 6-3 7-5 ahead of his German counterpart before play was interrupted by sunset.
#meeting #generations #victory #overthrows #Wawrinka