Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland beat sixth seed Roberto Carballes Baena of Spain 6-1 3-1, with the latter forced to retire in the first round of the Swiss Open in Gstaad last Tuesday (July 18). The match lasted for a little more than an hour, as the 30-year-old Spaniard succumbed to injury after being dominated throughout the entire length of the match.
Wawrinka will face Jaume Munar of Spain in the second round on Thursday (July 20). The 38-year-old Swiss might find it difficult against his much younger opponent, but will fancy his chances on his home soil nevertheless. He will also be relatively fresh for the match, as he did not have to play for long in the first round.
On that note, let us take a look at two things that stood out in Wawrinka’s first round match:
#1. Wawrinka’s forehand ruled the roost:
Wawrinka dominated from the baseline with his clinical forehand for the most part. He hit many few forehand winners, as the slower surface allowed him enough chance to prepare for his shots. Carballes Baena was overpowered and outhit by his much older opponent throughout the match.
Wawrinka, meanwhile, rolled back the years with a robust performance that should give him much confidence for his next match. He broke Carballes Baena twice in the first set to race through it and go one up in the match.
#2. Carballes Baena’s weak serve was exposed:
Carballes Baena could not serve well enough in the match and his serve was repeatedly exposed by Wawrinka. The Swiss put a lot of pressure on the Spaniard’s second serve and converted each of the three break points that came his way.
Wawrinka broke Carballes Baena once again in the second set and then held his serve to 3-1 up. It was at that point that the Spaniard decided to retire. Carballes Baena was able to win only 62% and 27% of the points on his first and second serves, respectively, in the match, which was a really poor performance.
In comparison, Wawrinka won a staggering 94% of the points on his first serve and 69% on his second to mark a dominant performance. The Swiss does not quite have age on his side, but might give Munar a run for his money in his next match. At this stage of his career, he will definitely want to go deep into the tournament.