Stuttgart Open 2022: Andy Murray, Nick Kyrgios make winning starts

The 46-time tour-level champion dropped the first three games of the match, but eventually regained his stride.

And Murray at the 2022 Stuttgart Open. (Image: Twitter)
By Nilavro Ghosh | Jun 7, 2022 | 2 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Andy Murray started his ATP Tour grass-court season with a bang on Tuesday at the BOSS OPEN in Stuttgart, where the former World No. 1 defeated Christopher O’Connell 6-4, 6-3 in the first round. The 46-time tour-level champion dropped the first three games of the match, but eventually regained his stride, breaking Australian qualifier O’Connell four times on route to a 95-minute victory on his ATP 250 debut. The win increased the Briton’s grass-court record to 111-23.

Murray chose to skip much of the clay-court season in order to focus on his grass-court training. The two-time Wimbledon winner had his first competitive appearance on the surface since 2022 last week at the Surbiton Trophy ATP Challenger Tour event, reaching the semi-finals before losing to Denis Kudla.

Kudla knocked out

Kudla, however, was knocked out of the tournament by Alexander Bublik in straight sets. The score at the end of the match was 7-6, 7-5. Bublik smashed 18 aces in the match and recorded astronomical win percentages on both first and second serves, 81% and 86% respectively. He also won two out of seven break points.

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Kyrgios wins comfortably

Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios also had a winning start to his 2022 grass season as he beat Czech Republic’s Jiri Lehecka 7-6 (7-3), 6-3. The Aussie hit 18 aces in the match and committed just four double faults. He had a higher win percentage on both serves with 84% on the first serve and 73% on the second. Kyrgios also claimed one out of three break points and won 11 service games.

Humbert exits

There was a shock on the cards elsewhere as eighth seed Ugo Humbert fell to defeat against compatriot Arthur Rinderknech. Both players recorded eight aces in the match and although Humbert committed fewer double faults, his win percentage on the second serve was just 65% while his opponent’s was an incredible 80%. Both players also managed to win two break points each and won the same number of service games with 14-a-piece. The score at the end of the match was 4-6, 7-6, 6-4.





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