Stan Wawrinka went the distance in his Monte-Carlo return today.
The 2015 Roland Garros champion hopes for a wild card pass to a Paris return.
Wawrinka: Far From Top Level
"I will ask for a [Roland Garros] wild card," Wawrinka said after bowing to Alexander Bublik 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 today. "That's what I do for every tournament, because I only have nine protected rankings I can use and I want to keep them.
"But I'm sure I will, in the end, have to use my protected ranking because the wild cards will have to go to other players."
The 37-year-old Swiss was sidelined for a year after undergoing left foot surgery. Wawrinka made his 2022 debut in Marbella last week losing to Elias Ymer 6-2, 6-4. Wawrinka showed a higher level of play today and was controlling the majority of baseline rallies for the first set-and-a-half before Bublik burst through the decider.
The three-time Grand Slam champion said today's standard of play exceeded expectations, but he knows he's still playing catch-up vs. the rest of the Tour.
"I'm happy with what I did in that match. I think it's very positive," Wawrinka said. "It's a lot better than I ever thought I could do today. Of course I'm aware that I'm not ready physically, mentally, tennistically. I didn't play a lot of tennis at all before I'm here.
"So I am trying to catch up because I had the goal to come back to competition maybe too quickly, but it was important mentally to know I was going to play two tournaments, Marbella, here, to be able to practice with the best players, to play against them, and to find the emotions that I missed so much.
"But I'm aware, as I said, that I need a lot more practice, and I need to work hard on my tennis and my physical condition."
Photo credit: Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters Facebook