After being out of the tour for almost a year, Stan Wawrinka made a comeback at the 2022 Marbella Challenger Tour. Wawrinka, who flushed off the news of his retirement prior to the tournament, was forced to re-think it after a first-round exit. After giving it some thought, he opened up about his decision at the pre-tournament press conference in Monte Carlo. During the press conference, Wawrinka confessed that his performance in 2022 summers will decide his future on the tour.
The 37-year-old Swiss has been struggling with his form lately. However, that hasn’t always been the case. Turning pro in 2002, Wawrinka steadily climbed the staircase of success, taking down a number of players. 2 decades down the line, Stan today has a total of 16 singles titles, and has been a 14-time runner up.
Even though the record might be matched by some other players as well, what makes Stan stand out from others is the Grand Slam titles out of the 16 titles. Going down the history line, Wawrinka has a total of 3 Grand Slam singles titles to his name.
1st Grand Slam- 2014 Australian Open
Despite winning just one title, Stan Wawrinka had a strong 2013 season. Carrying forward form in 2014, Wawrinka started his year with a title win in ATP 250 Chennai. However, he had bigger plans.
Wawrinka entered the Australian Open as the 8th seed. Determined to win the slam, he started his campaign with a first-round straight-set win over Andrey Golubev, followed by a second-round win over Alejandro Falla.
In the third round, he was scheduled to play against Vasek Pospisil. However, the Canadian made a last moment withdrawal after suffering a back injury, sending Wawrinka directly into the fourth round. Going strong in form, he faced no difficulty in beating Tommy Robredo in straight sets in the fourth round.
Wawrinka seemed to be having a butter-smooth run in the draw till now. However, it was in the quarterfinals that he was first put to test. Going neck to neck against the then World No. 2 Novak Djokovic, The Swiss grace was forced to raise his game to win. Being in a devastating form, Djokovic gave his best to leave no room for Wawrinka. However, not deviating from his determination, Wawrinka went ahead, winning the match in 5 tight sets. The was accompanied by a comfortable semifinal win over Tomas Berdych.
In the finals, Wawrinka played the then World No.1 Rafael Nadal. Even though Rafa continued his ever-dominant game, it didn’t seem to bother Wawrinka much. Aiming for a title, Wawrinka outplayed the Spaniard in a comfortable 4-set win.
2nd Grand Slam- 2015 Roland Garros
The 2015 Roland Garros was a much-anticipated one as it was only the second time since 2005 that the king of clay Rafael Nadal was not in the finals of the Roland Garros.
Stan Wawrinka had kicked off her 2022 season with 2 titles by the time he entered the clay-court season. He entered the red court season with back-to-back early-round losses in Monte Carlo and Madrid. Even though he made a slight comeback in Rome, he again faced an early-round exit in Geneva. Looking at the last 4 tournaments, Stan was definitely a potential player. However, he was far from being called the favorite to win Roland Garros.
Entering the tournament as the 8th seed, Wawrinka cruised through the first four rounds with complete ease. In the quarterfinals, he took on fellow Swiss and one of the title favorites, Roger Federer. Even though the expected result was Roger Federer winning, Wawrinka seemed to differ from the view. Playing like a wall against the Swiss maestro, Wawrinka left no card unturned in beating Roger Federer in straight sets.
In the semifinals, he faced the home favorite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Going neck to neck against each other, both players raised their game, playing a close call match. However, after 3 hours and 46 minutes of the high-intensity marathon, it was Wawrinka who came out victorious in 4 sets.
Beating Tsonga, Wawrinka set up a showdown with Novak Djokovic. Beating Nadal in the quarterfinals, the top-seeded Serbian seemed to be in a devastating form. As expected by the tennis community, Djokovic started on a strong note, winning the first set. However, Stan had some other plans. Making a comeback, he geared up his performance, going on to win the next three sets, beating Djokovic to claim the 2015 Roland Garros title.
3rd Grand Slam – 2016 US Open
The Swiss, playing in his prime for the previous two years. Playing some of the best matches of his career in 2014-2015, Stan Wawrinka took his total title tally for the 2 years to 7. However, just like any other top player, Wawrinka also possessed a never-give-up attitude. Looking to take his tally further, Wawrinka kicked off his 2016 season in the same form.
He started his season with a title win in Chennai. Continuing his dominance over the hardcourt, he further went on to win the Dubai Open. However, hardcourt wasn’t the only court of dominance. The same year he was also on the clay courts of ATP 250 Geneva.
Ending the grass-court season with a second-round loss at Wimbledon, he next entered the second leg of the hardcourt season. He started with a semifinal loss to Canada, followed by a third-round loss in Cincinnati. However, there was more in the bag for the then World No. 3.
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He kicked off his US Open campaign with comfortable wins in the first two rounds. In the third round, he was put to test by Britain’s Daniel Evans. However, holding on to his nerve, Wawrinka escaped the close call match, coming out victorious in 5 sets. In the fourth round, Wawrinka outplayed Illya Marchenko in four sets to set up a quarterfinal clash with Juan Martin del Potro.
Playing the power-hitting Argentinian in the quarterfinals, Stan underwent tight first two sets. However, raising his game, he went on to beat the Tower of Tandil in 4 sets. It was followed by a semifinal win over Kei Nishikori.
In the finals, Wawrinka faced the World No. 1 Novak Djokovic. However, repeating the Roland Garros result, Stan beat the Serbian in 4 sets.
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Stan Wawrinka last played at the 2021 Australian Open, suffering a second-round loss to Marton Fucsovics.
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