WHAT HAPPENED: After two hours of play in what was heating up to be a thrilling exchange between Stan Wawrinka and Corentin Moutet, Wawrinka retired from the contest at the end of the second-set tiebreak, allowing the lucky loser to take the win, 6-4, 7-6(7), ret.
It was a rare treat for fans to get a glimpse of a former champion on Court 5, as the crowd was standing room only and several rows deep along the sidelines. Though the Swiss appeared to be a shadow of himself for much of the first set, he roared back to life in the second, giving the crowd hope for a comeback win. But all credit to Moutet, who had a few matches already under his belt in the qualifying rounds and was firing on all cylinders to challenge the 2016 US Open champion.
Moutet drew blood first, breaking early for a 3-2 lead and carrying that lead all the way to a one-set advantage. But as the second set was underway, the Swiss champion came alive, fist-pumping his way out of a 0-40 hole on serve to take his own 3-2 lead. Both men held serve until the tiebreak, when Wawrinka squandered set points and Moutet took advantage to claim it, 9-7.
At the conclusion of the match, it was unclear as to what exactly was bothering the Swiss. Twice Wawrinka had called the trainer on a changeover to tend to his finger, and at 6-5, he had put in a request for another visit upon completion of the second set for an issue with his leg. But after the grueling tiebreak, Wawrinka had made up his mind not to go on, and he shook hands with Moutet at the net to bow out.
WHAT IT MEANS: Moutet’s next opponent will be a first-ever contest with either No. 21 Botic van De Zandschulp or Tomas Machac in Round 2. Moutet looks to improve on his best result at the US Open, which came when he reached the third round here in 2020.
While Wawrinka is making another early exit this time, he assures fans he will return to his winning ways soon. “I see that I'm playing and feeling better. Even if I'm not winning yet, I know I will be back winning matches soon. That's for sure,” he said. “I will never be able to play as well as I did [before] in my career, because I'm getting older, but I believe that I still have some good and big results in me, and that's why I’m gonna keep fighting a little bit."
MATCH POINT: The win extends the 23-year-old Frenchman’s record against Wawrinka to 3-0, his second first-round victory against the Swiss at a major this year. His last came on the red clay of Roland Garros.
