ATP Tour

Seyboth Wild defeats #NextGenATP star Engel in Kitzbuehel

Thiago Seyboth Wild captured his first tour-level win since early May on Tuesday at the Generali Open in Kitzbuehel, where he overcame #NextGenATP German Justin Engel 7-5, 6-3 to reach the second round.

Engel was competing at the ATP 250 clay-court event through the Next Gen Accelerator, which offers players aged 20 and under increased opportunity to compete on the ATP Tour.

The 17-year-old, who is the No. 208 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, was aiming for his second tour-level win on clay after winning his first-round match against Jan-Lennard Struff in Hamburg in May. Engel was unable to find his best level against Seyboth Wild, who will next meet fourth seed Roberto Bautista Agut.

“The ATP is providing great support for talented young players, allowing us to compete with the top players early on,” Engel said in Kitzbuehel. “I hope this support proves mutually beneficial and allows me to give back to our sport what it has already given me.”

In other action on Day 2, Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp overcame Chilean wild card Nicolas Jarry 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 to reach the second round. The 29-year-old will next play Filip Misolic after the Austrian defeated fifth seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-5, 5-7, 6-3 in two hours and 42 minutes.

Misolic is making his Top 100 debut after reaching the quarter-finals in Bastad last week and holds a 28-5 record across all levels since May. The 23-year-old has fond memories in Kitzbuehel, having reached his only tour-level final in the city in 2022.

German qualifier Struff downed Austrian Sebastian Ofner 6-4, 6-2 in 65 minutes to advance. Struff won 81 per cent of his first-serve points, according to Infosys ATP Stats, to maintain his perfect record against Austrians at the ATP 250 event this year. The 35-year-old defeated home hopes Nico Hipfl and Jurij Rodionov in qualifying.

Struff’s countryman Yannick Hanfmann also advanced. The German qualifier eliminated Austrian wild card Lukas Neumayer 7-5, 6-2 in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting. Hanfmann, who reached the final in Kitzbuehel in 2020, will play second seed Sebastian Baez in the second round.

Frenchman Arthur Cazaux enjoyed a run to the semi-finals at the ATP 250 event in Gstaad last week and made a winning start in Kitzbuehel, where he beat Ignacio Buse 6-3, 3-6, 7-5. The No. 100 player in the PIF ATP Rankings next faces seventh seed Francisco Comesana. Thiago Agustin Tirante moved past Jaime Faria 6-2, 6-2 to record his first tour-level win since he defeated Dominic Thiem in Kitzbuehel last year.