Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka worked with trainer Magnus Norman again when the Swiss stunned the third-place finisher.
Casper Ruud in his first match since meeting Norman.
LAST MINUTE: Magnus Norman is back on Stan Wawrinka’s team.
He will be with Wawrinka at the Australian Open. #wawrinka #SwissIndoors pic.twitter.com/ozVNKNf9xl — Simon Haring (@_shaering) October 25, 2022
Wawrinka, a former World No. 3, previously worked with Norman twice.
Wawrinka and Norman worked from 2013 to 2017, while their second stint was from 2018 to 2020. On Tuesday, Wawrinka upset No.2 seed Ruud 6-4, 6-4 in his first match at the Swiss Indoors Basel. Wawrinka earned the first break of the match in game seven, before serving for the first set in game ten.
In the second set, Wawrinka broke Ruud in the ninth game and served out for the match in the next game. “It’s so special. Lots of excitement, being back here in Basel. The Swiss fans have always been amazing to me.
Playing here has always been difficult because I’m always nervous when I walk on this court, I always want to show my best,» Wawrinka said after surprising Ruud, according to Tennis Majors.
Wawrinka explains why he keeps playing
Wawrinka, 37, underwent two surgeries on his foot last year.
Still, he refused to just give up and simply walk away from tennis. “This is one of the big reasons and the main reason why I keep playing. I’m getting old, that’s for sure, I had to fight a lot in the last two years with an injury.
The surgery and the return was not easy. She was fighting very hard to get back physically fit in tennis. So to be able to do that, to produce that tonight here in Switzerland, of course is something really special and I hope I can continue to play well,» Wawrinka added.
For Wawrinka, beating Ruud was his biggest win since beating Novak Djokovic at the 2019 US Open. Wawrinka, now ranked 194th in the world, will move up the ranking list next Monday.
