Tennis pro Nicola Kuhn missed out on a sensation against young star Carlos Alcaraz at the European Open in Hamburg.
After surprisingly winning the first set, the 22-year-old had to admit defeat to the Spaniard, who is three years younger than him, 6:3, 1:6, 6:7 (3:7) in the first round match in 2:26 hours. Alcaraz, ranked sixth in the world, is the number one seed at the ATP tournament at Rothenbaum and the big favourite to win his fifth tournament of the year.
Kuhn, who used to compete for Spain, showed a courageous and strong performance for a long time. In the third set he had to be treated several times on his right thigh, could only run with difficulty and then had no chance in the final tie-break. It would have been Kuhn’s first win on the ATP Tour since January 2021. As a result of his withdrawal, nine of eleven German tennis professionals are no longer playing in the men’s and women’s clay court tournaments in Hamburg.
