BAD RAPPENAU, June 6, 2026
This is a week Emilio Nava will not forget anytime soon. The 24-year-old US-American has left his mark on the Neckarcup 2.0 in Bad Rappenau, reaching the semifinals of the ATP Challenger 100 event in both singles and doubles.
On a sunny Saturday at the TC Blau-Gelb Bad Rappenau, Nava first faced Germany’s Henri Squire, who had little answer to the powerful game of the Californian with Mexican roots. Nava produced a near-flawless performance, while Squire struggled with a high number of unforced errors. The one-sided contest lasted just 58 minutes before Nava secured his place in the final with a 6-1, 6-4 victory.
Back-to-back @ATPChallenger finals!
Emilio Nava 🇺🇲 cruises past Henri Squire 🇩🇪 6-1 6-4 to reach the #Neckarcup championship match. #ATPChallenger #BadRappenau pic.twitter.com/c6ui81AUtt
— NECKARCUP 2.0 (@NeckarH) June 6, 2026
“Henri didn’t have his best day today, while everything worked for me,” Nava said after the match.
Less than two hours later, however, the US-American was unable to continue his run in doubles. Partnering Argentina’s Alex Barrena, he fell 6-2, 6-2 to the Taiwanese-Japanese pairing of Jason Jung and Kaito Uesugi.
The hopes of the home crowd then rested on German NextGen star Diego Dedura. The Berlin native once again showcased impressive clay-court tennis, but his opponent, Croatia’s Luka Mikrut, was equally outstanding.
Fans were treated to long rallies and every aspect of high-level tennis: precise groundstrokes, delicate drop shots, serves reaching 200 km/h, and exceptional court coverage. Mikrut claimed the opening set 6-4. In the second set, a single break gave him a 5-4 lead, and he served out the match with another 6-4 scoreline.
Luka Mikrut 🇭🇷 to challenge Emilio Nava in Sunday’s #NECKARCUP singles final following a 6-4 6-4 win over Diego Dedura 🇩🇪#ATPChallenger #BadRappenau pic.twitter.com/EDaag12TiT
— NECKARCUP 2.0 (@NeckarH) June 6, 2026
Like Nava, Mikrut had the chance to become the first player at this year’s Neckarcup to reach both the singles and doubles finals. Teaming up with fellow Croatian Matej Dodig, he faced doubles specialists Tim Ruehl and Mick Veldheer.
Ruehl and Veldheer struck first, earning an early break and holding on for a 6-4 opening set. Momentum shifted in the second set as the Croatian duo secured an early break of their own and levelled the match with a 6-3 set win.
The deciding match tie-break was a dramatic affair, with the lead changing hands several times. At 8-6, Mikrut and Dodig appeared to have one foot in the final. However, Ruehl and Veldheer produced a remarkable comeback, winning the final four points in a row to seal a thrilling 10-8 victory.
“When we play at our level, we know we can go deep at tournaments like this,” said Ruehl afterwards. “It’s only our fourth tournament together and we’re already in our second final. Tomorrow we’ll try to win the title. That would be a fantastic result for us.”
