Davis Cup: Stan Wawrinka - The Trial and the Fire
In 2014, Stan Wawrinka won the Davis Cup with Switzerland. In Trier today and tomorrow against Germany the first thing is to reach the intermediate round in September.
by Jens Huiber
last edit: Feb 03, 2023, 07:33 am
By Jens Huiber from Trier
"Trente-sept?" Severin Lüthi wanted to make sure on Thursday how old Stan Wawrinka actually was. The fact that the Swiss captain did this in French suited the three-time major champion. However, the official language of the Swiss team in Trier is English. When Wawrinka is involved, as in the draw and the press conference that followed.
So Wawrinka already has 37 years under his belt. That makes him a very, very old tennis player, as he noted with a grin. But compared to the remaining lifetime, he is still really young. And as long as he can, he wants to remain active in professional tennis. Because he loves the competition, as well as the applause of the audience. So the fire still burns in him.
Wawrinka and Zverev only with one win in 2023
Wawrinka will now play the second game of the day after 5 p.m. (in our live ticker) against Alexander Zverev this Thursday. Under bad conditions: The German number one has won all four previous encounters. The current form curve also does not suggest that Wawrinka could succeed this time. Of his three matches in the 2023 season, he was only able to win that one at the United Cup against Alexander Bublik. On the other hand: Zverev's 2023 balance sheet does not look exactly rosy at 1: 3.
So what goals does a man like Stan Wawrinka still have? "I want to play at a level again where I feel like I can beat almost everyone," he says. He feels physically good, even in terms of play, he can't complain. It's the process he enjoys. What ex-coach Daniel Vallverdu had already confirmed in an interview with tennisnet in Wimbledon.
Stricker and Riedi better classified in the ranking
Incidentally, if Severin Lüthi had nominated strictly according to the world rankings, Stan Wawrinka should only give the Edelfan today. Because both Dominic Stricker (number 118) and Leandro Riedi (number 127) are in the ATP charts ahead of Wawrinka, who is currently number 135. But when the 2014 Davis Cup champion returns to the national team, then of course he wants to reconnect with the memories from back then. Trente-sept or not.