MASPALOMAS, November 30, 2023
Kilian Feldbausch has reached his first quarterfinal on the ATP Challenger Tour. The 18-year-old Swiss rallied from a set down to overcome Oleksii Krutykh from Ukraine 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 in Thursday’s second round of the EÓ Hotels Maspalomas Challenger.
Feldbausch, who battled through the qualifying at the €73,000 clay-court event in southern Gran Canaria, struck four aces and won 72 per cent of his first-service points to secure victory in two hours and 12 minutes.
The Geneva native is in good shape and recently captured his maiden title on the Pro Circuit by winning the ITF World Tennis Tour M15 event in Boca Raton, United States.
“I played the South American swing before and faced some good players. I came to Florida with a good rhythm. Finally winning the tournament was, of course, fantastic,” explained Feldbausch.
“I’m a solid player, not a John Isner with a powerful serve. I always try to find a solution on the court,” describes the World No. 659 his playing style.“The Challenger Tour is a big challenge for me. But I like that. You have to be physically and mentally strong.”
His close circle is a particular source of support for him. The West Swiss hails from a tennis family. His grandfather, Franz Feldbausch, played in the Davis Cup in 1956 for Germany, while his father, Michael Feldbausch, also competed under the German flag and reached as high as 706th in the world rankings. Kilian’s mother and coach, Cathy Caverzasio, born in Switzerland but also having represented Italy during her career, even climbed to position 34 in the WTA rankings in 1990.
“Both my parents coach me. Here in Maspalomas, my uncle is by my side since my mother has to work at home. It immensely helps me to be on the road with my family,” Feldbausch said.
Nagal falls, Martinez advances
The teenager will next challenge Imanol Lopez, who caused the upset of the day. The 24-year-old Spanish qualifier knocked out No. 2 seed Sumit Nagal of India 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 in two hours and 36 minutes. Lopez will also compete in the stage of the final eight at Challenger level for the first time.
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The pair will be joined by another qualifier, as Svyatoslav Gulin battled past No. 6 seed Raul Brancaccio of Italy 7-5, 4-6, 6-3. The 20-year-old Russian capitalized on four of his nine break-point chances to prevail after two hours and 27 minutes.
Up next for Gulin will be top seed Pedro Martinez, who remained untroubled in his match against Lithuanian qualifier Vilnius Gaubas, winning 6-3, 6-1. The 117th-ranked Spaniard saved both break points he faced and converted four of his own five break-point opportunities to advance in one hour and 20 minutes.
