Wawrinka wins opener at Aix-en-Provence Challenger, next faces top seed

Stan Wawrinka made a strong start to the Open Aix Provence Crédit Agricole in France on Tuesday. The Swiss defeated Ugo Blanchet 6-3, 6-4 in an opening-round clash at the ATP Challenger 175 event.

"Very happy with the victory," said the 40-year-old. "It's true that it's important for me to be focused and positive about what I was doing, even if it's never easy in the early rounds. So, I'm very happy and satisfied to have been able to win in two sets."

Win secured. Escape... in progress 🏃‍♂️😂#ATPChallenger | @OpenduPaysdAix | @stanwawrinka pic.twitter.com/i0pWGRdoJv

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) April 29, 2025

Fans will next be treated to a second-round showdown between the former No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings and top seed Alexei Popyrin. The Aussie has won their two previous encounters, at the Paris Olympics last year and in 2023, when they squared off in the Umag ATP 250 final. Wawrinka is 5-9 this season across all levels and is competing in Aix-en-Provence as a wild card, seeking his best form.

"I feel very good physically and tennis-wise. Training is going very well, I've been pushing myself to reach a good level since the beginning of the year," said the 16-time tour-level titlist. "It's definitely always very different for me in matches with the pressure we put on ourselves, with the desire to do well. The level is always a little off. It takes time to regain that confidence, and it's these kinds of matches that are important for me to stay positive and fight against it so I can try to gain a little confidence from victories."

In other Aix-en-Provence action, #NextGenATP American Nishesh Basavareddy won his first clay-court match at Challenger level or above with a 7-5, 7-6(3) victory against Otto Virtanen. Mariano Navone defeated Gregoire Barrere 7-6(3), 6-0 and Daniel Elahi Galan ousted Billy Harris 6-2, 6-2.

Nardi, Vukic and Elias advance in Estoril
Italian Luca Nardi downed Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-2, 6-3 in the opening round of the Millennium Estoril Open. Nardi, 21, dropped just four points behind his first serve (21/25), according to Infosys ATP Stats. Kovacevic was crowned champion at last month's Challenger 175 event in Cap Cana.

^{Luca Nardi in Estoril. Credit: Mike Lawrence/ATP Challenger Tour}

Portugal's own Gastao Elias used the home support in Estoril as he rallied past #NextGenATP star Learner Tien 5-7, 7-5, 6-4 after two hours, 24 minutes. By defeating Tien, 15 years his junior, the 34-year-old Elias secured his highest-ranked win since March 2023. Aleksandar Vukic overcame Nicolas Moreno De Alboran 6-3, 2-6, 6-0 to set a second-round meeting with fourth seed Marcos Giron.

On Wednesday, Brazilian Joao Fonseca headlines the Estoril order of play, which also features seventh seed Nicolas Jarry and fifth seed Miomir Kecmanovic. Fans can tune into Challenger TV to stream all ATP Challenger Tour matches live and on demand at no cost.

All fun and games at Media Day 🎥😀#ATPChallenger | @EstorilOpen pic.twitter.com/nogrIe67tK

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) April 29, 2025