By Chris Oddo/ Tuesday, October 22, 2013

 

Stan Wawrinka was stunned in Basel by Frenchman Edouard Roger Vasselin on Tuesday, and his London hopes have taken a hit as a result.

Photo Source: AP

Stan Wawrinka dropped a first-round match for the sixth time in 10 career appearances at the Swiss Indoors in Basel, falling in straight sets to Edouard Roger Vasselin, 6-4, 6-3.

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Roger Vasselin saved all three break points he faced, including two in the second set.

The world No. 65 needed only one match point, breaking Wawrinka as the fourth seed tossed in a double-fault to end the proceedings in one hour and 11 minutes.

It was a lethargic effort from Wawrinka, who drops to 9-10 in 10 Basel appearances, and will see his chances of making the Barclays World Tour Finals take a hit by the end of the week. Roger Federer will leapfrog Wawrinka after his first-round win on Monday, and the Swiss maestro could create some breathing room with a win tomorrow over Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin.

Richard Gasquet, currently 30 points behind Wawrinka, needs to reach the Basel semis to move ahead of Wawrinka. He will meet compatriot Michael Llodra in the first round on Wednesday.

In Valencia, Tommy Haas will look to keep his slim hopes alive as the second seed at the Valencia Open. The German will open his bid tomorrow with a tough first-rounder against Philipp Kohlschreiber.

Fortunately for Wawrinka, he won't lose any points to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Milos Raonic, as both are off this week.

Next week's Paris Masters should be exciting as five or six players could all be in position to claim the last three spots.

Here is an updated list of the current standings: