by Patrick FAVRE | 15 May, 2022 | News_slider-en, News_Tournoi-en
Johan Nikles (ATP 294) is the first big winner of the Gonet Geneva Open. Appearing at his home club, the Geneva-born player has made it through the qualifiers of an ATP 250 tournament for the first time in his career.
Fresh from defeating Germany’s Peter Gojowczyk (ATP 99) on Saturday, Nikles overcame Lukas Rosol (ATP 249) 6-4 6-4 to book a place in the main draw. A semi-finalist in the 2016 tournament, when he lost to Stan Wawrinka, the Czech will have had difficulty recognising the player he beat 6-2 6-1 at last July’s Challenger Tour event in Amersfoort, Netherlands. “I went out there to fight,” said Nikles, after his breakthrough win, one that has come after several months of trying.
Nikles now faces a Swiss derby on Tuesday against Zurich player Leandro Riedi (ATP 331), with the winner advancing to a round-of-16 tie against Netherlands’ Tallon Griekspoor (ATP 67). First up, however, is a richly promising order of play on Monday, with Richard Gasquet taking on John Millman, Dominic Thiem facing Marco Cecchinato, and Benoit Paire up against Emil Ruusuvuori, all from 16:00 on the Court Central.
by Patrick FAVRE | 14 May, 2022 | News_slider-en, News_Tournoi-en
Johan Nikles (ATP 294) is the only Swiss player still in the running in the qualifying rounds of the Gonet Geneva Open. Playing on home soil, the Geneva local sealed a 6-3 6-3 victory over Peter Gojowczyk (ATP 99), who was runner-up in the tournament in 2018, in the first win of his career against a player ranked in the ATP Top 100.
The German, who reached the fourth round in the most recent US Open, was caught off guard by the Swiss player’s flair. Though his opponent was coming back from injury, Johan Nikles clinched a convincing win that confirmed his impressive form over the last few months. All he needs to do now is repeat the performance on Sunday against Lukas Rosol (ATP 249). The Swiss lost the only match he previously played against the 36-year-old Czech player, in the fourth round of the Amersfoort Challenger last July (6-2 6-1). But Johan Nikles has made great progress over the last ten months.
Though Jakub Paul (ATP 461) and Damien Wenger (ATP 462) both conceded predictable defeats against Lukas Rosol and Pablo Cuevas (ATP 128), respectively, Henri Laaksonen (ATP 97), who seemed physically weaker than usual, suffered an unexpected 6-4 6-3 loss against Lebanon’s Benjamin Hassan (ATP 327).
