Fasten your seatbelts, coz ‘Stanimal‘ is on a hunt for its prey in the vicinity of the Great Alpine mountains. Last year, Stan Wawrinka made an emotional return to the Swiss Open after almost a gap of ten years. Although he couldn’t make a deep run into the tournament last time, his presence was more than enough to make the Swiss fans happy. This year, yet again he’ll feature in this tournament and has to face Slovakia’s Lukas Klein in his first match. Looking at his form this year, this battle looks quite intriguing as of now!

The three-time Grand Slam champion has been struggling with injuries and lack of form over the past few months. His best record has been reaching the R16 thrice in his previous tournaments in the 2024 season. Lukas Klein on the other hand, has managed to reach one QF and two R16 in his previous tournaments. Is this enough to keep him ahead of ‘Stan the Man‘?

Stan Wawrinka vs Lukas Klein: Preview

Wawrinka is entering this match after his second-round defeat to Gael Monfils at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships. In that match, the Swiss recorded five aces and didn’t commit a single double fault. His first-serve win percentage was 73% and his second-serve win percentage was 67%. However, he failed to convert two of his breakpoint chances against Monfils.

The 39-year-old tennis star has hit 72 aces this season and has committed 26 double faults. He has won 79% of his service games compared to just 21% of his return games. How are his numbers compared to his Slovak opponent?

Well, Klein is entering this match after facing defeat at the hands of Roberto Carballes Baena in the R16 of the Challenger Braunschweig, DE. The Spaniard completely outclassed Klein in that match by 6-2,6-4. Lukas Klein could manage to hit only one ace in the entire match and committed two double faults. He won 60% of the first serve and 39% of the second serve, while in the breakpoints he was 1/6.

The 26-year-old Slovak tennis star has hit 67 aces this season and committed 36 double faults. As of now, he has won 84% of his service games and just 14% of his return games this season.

Wawrinka vs Klein: Head-to-Head

Wawrinka hasn’t yet played against Lukas Klein on the Tour. However, he has vast experience in this tournament and has also reached the final in Gstaad in 2005. For Klein, this will be his first appearance here and he surely is looking forward to taking his chances against the aging and out-of-form Swiss star, but can he?

Prediction: Wawrinka to win straight sets

Wawrinka means vast experience! Can Lukas prove to be a mighty challenger for the experienced campaigner on the Swiss soil? Looks quite unlikely as of now! Wawrinka possesses one of the strongest one-handed backhands on the tour and this can prove to be the biggest challenge for the Slovak to handle in this match. The Swiss has recorded a win-loss record of just 4-10 this season, while it’s 5-6 for Klein. Not too impressive for either of them, right?

Wawrinka’s powerful offensive baseline game and fiery serves will be tested against a tricky competitor like Klein. Even if we look at their current rankings, Klein is currently ranked 118 in the world, while Stan Wawrinka (105) is ranked just outside the Top 100. So, Stan looks most likely to be the Man to win this epic matchup on the clay court!