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A first casualty among the seeds

by Patrick FAVRE | 21 May, 2023 | News_slider-en, News_Tournoi-en

US prodigy Ben Shelton (ATP 35) had his stay in Switzerland cut short on Sunday, coming off second best in a three-setter lasting a shade over two hours to Marco Cecchinato (ATP 83). The 21-year-old No. 5 seed passed up an excellent opportunity to see off the Gonet Geneva Open regular, coughing up a 5-3 lead in the first set, with the Italian eventually running out a 7-5 2-6 6-2 winner

While the Atlanta-born player rues his missed opportunity, Cecchinato – a Roland-Garros 2018 semi-finalist just days after a first-round loss at the Parc des Eaux-Vives – will now take on the winner of the opening match in today’s night session between Marc-Andrea Hüsler (ATP 82) and Yibing Wu (ATP 57).

Sunday’s last day match was a clash of the giants, with just five centimetres separating Benoît Paire (ATP 160) at 1.96m and Christopher Eubanks (ATP 86) at 2.01m. Not for the first time, the most Genevese of the French players turned in an inconsistent performance. An evenly contested first set was decided by a one-sided tie-break in which the Avignon man never got going. His confidence seemingly dented, Paire lost his serve at the start of the second and fell 4-0 behind. Though he showed some pride in pulling back to 4-3, Eubanks kept his cool to force the Frenchman to serve to stay in the match at 5-3. The 27-year-old American, another native of Atlanta, then went in for the kill, making the most of his opponent’s errors to win 7-6(2) 6-3 and set up a meeting with 2019 Gonet Geneva Open champion, Alexander Zverev.

A thrilling first instalment

by Patrick FAVRE | 21 May, 2023 | News_slider-en, News_Tournoi-en

Despite the support of a sizeable crowd, Jerome Kym (ATP 401) was unable to upset the odds and went down 7-6(2) 6-7(5) 6-4 to Arthur Cazaux (ATP 197). The Swiss player could at least take consolation from playing a full part in the first thriller of the 2023 Gonet Geneva Open, an engrossing match that lasted two hours and 55 minutes.

Kym will be kicking himself, however, having led 0-30 on the Frenchman’s serve at 4-4 in the third set. The all-important break point proved elusive, however, and at 4-5, Cazaux made the most of the home player’s double fault at deuce before hitting a backhand pass down the line to secure victory, the ball clipping the net and then dropping in.

The first round of the qualifying competition provided a fitting start to the tournament. Cazaux will return to the Central at 11:00 on Sunday to fight it out for a place in the main draw with Croatia’s Nino Serdarudic (ATP 305). The first round proper gets under way at 14:00, with Ben Shelton taking on Marco Cecchinato and Benoît Paire facing Christopher Eubanks.

As for the 20-year-old Kym, he has taken an important step forward as he looks to kickstart a career stalled by months of injury problems. Blessed with a fast forehand, he has the means to start climbing the Tour rankings fast and catch up with his compatriots and peers Dominic Stricker and Leandro Riedi.

A main draw to die for

by Patrick FAVRE | 19 May, 2023 | News_slider-en, News_Tournoi-en

If the seedings at the Gonet Geneva Open are to be believed, then Casper Ruud will take on Alexander Zverev in one semi-final and Grigor Dimitrov will do battle with Taylor Fritz in the other, a line-up that is sure to pull the crowds in.

As we all know, however, tennis tournaments are anything but predictable, and it’s hard to see how the Gonet Geneva Open will not throw up its fair share of surprises.

Held on the shores of Lake Geneva in the presence of the city’s mayor, Marie Barbey-Chappuis, Friday’s draw produced several enticing first-round encounters that look too close to call. Take the duel between Zurich’s Marc-Andrea Hüsler (ATP 82) and China’s Yibing Wu (ATP 57) or the clash between Chile’s Nicolas Jarry (ATP 56), a runner-up here in 2019, and Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic (ATP 46), a recent winner in Banja Luka. And then there’s the prospective second-round match-ups between Benoît Paire (ATP 160) and Alexander Zverev, and Alexander Bublik (ATP 49) and Taylor Fritz.

With the draw now done, it’s time for the action to begin. Qualifying kicks off on Saturday at 11:00, while the opening matches of the main draw take place on Sunday.

The third wild card for Benoît Paire

by adminsc | 19 May, 2023 | News_slider-en, News_Tournoi-en

The third wild card for Benoît Paire

Benoît Paire (ATP 160), one of the most spectacular players on the Tour, will be part of the Gonet Geneva Open, which starts this Saturday. The Frenchman received the third and last wild card from the organizers. The first two wild cards were awarded to Grigor Dimitrov (ATP 33) and Alexander Zverev (ATP 22).

At 34 years old, Benoît Paire is currently having a good series of wins. This spring, he excelled on the Challenger front with a title in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and a final in Francavilla last week. This will be his third appearance at the Gonet Geneva Open. In 2021, he had a superb fight of 2h34′ against the German Dominik Köpfer. Last year, he beat the Finnish Emil Ruusuvuori before losing against the future winner of the tournament Casper Ruud.

The draw for the main draw of the Gonet Geneva Open will take place this evening at 6:30 pm. We will then know the first matches of a tournament that looks so promising.

Alexander Zverev for a second title at the Gonet Geneva Open

by adminsc | 18 May, 2023 | News_slider-en, News_Tournoi-en

Alexander Zverev for a second title at the Gonet Geneva Open

Winner of the tournament in 2019, Alexander Zverev (ATP 22) will be one of the headliners of the Gonet Geneva Open which starts this Saturday. The Olympic Champion received the second wild card issued by the organizers. The first was awarded to Grigor Dimitrov (ATP 33).

World No. 2 last year after his semifinal match against Rafael Nadal at the French Open, during which he suffered a serious ankle injury, Alexander Zverev is on his way to returning to his best level. He returns to the Parc des Eaux-Vives in the hope of doing as well as he did four years ago. He won the tournament after a thrilling final against Chilean Nicolas Jarry after having saved two match points.

Alexander Zverev, 26, has won 19 tournaments, including the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and the Masters twice in 2018 and 2021. He was also a finalist at the US Open in 2020.

In addition, the wild card promised to a Swiss player for the qualifying draw went to Jerome Kym (ATP 401). The 20-year-old from Aargau, who was held back by a knee injury for a long time, won his first ITF Tour title in Trento, Italy in early April.

Grigor Dimitrov returns to the Gonet Geneva Open

by adminsc | 16 May, 2023 | News_slider-en, News_Tournoi-en

Grigor Dimitrov returns to the Gonet Geneva Open

Grigor Dimitrov (ATP 33) returns to the Gonet Geneva Open, that will start this Saturday, May 20. Present at the Parc des Eaux-Vives in 2019 and 2021, the Bulgarian has received a wild card from the organizers.

Winner of the Masters in 2017 to rise to third place in the ATP rankings and semi-finalist three times in Grand Slam tournaments, Grigor Dimitrov, at 31 years old, remains one of the most appreciated players on the circuit. With his superb one-handed backhand, he has a game that can only delight purists.

Beaten in his last two tournaments by Carlos Alcaraz in Madrid and by Novak Djokovic in Rome, two matches in which he really put up a good fight, Grigor Dimitrov arrives in Geneva with real ambitions. He has the weapons to get involved in the fight for the title.

With the arrival of Grigor Dimitrov, the field of the Gonet Geneva Open, whose two headliners are two-time defending champion Casper Ruud (ATP 4) and Taylor Fritz (ATP 9), now includes 12 of the top 50 players in the ATP rankings. We are waiting for the arrival of other top players by Friday.