HAGEN/STARNBERG, August 3, 2026
The main draw of the Platzmann Open in Hagen gets underway on Tuesday with eight German players in action, although the tournament suffered a late setback following the withdrawal of newly crowned Bonn Open champion Jan Choinski.
The German-British player, who captured his 10th ATP Challenger title on Sunday in Bonn, informed tournament organizers immediately after his departure that he would be unable to compete due to exhaustion.
Sunday’s final round of qualifying produced mixed fortunes for the home contingent. In an all-German showdown, Rudolf Molleker defeated Tim Handel 7-6(7), 6-3 to secure his place in the main draw. Handel created several set points in a tightly contested opening set and troubled Molleker with his powerful first serve, but Molleker’s aggressive baseline game proved decisive, particularly during the longer rallies.
Nikolai Barsukov was unable to join him after falling 6-0, 6-2 to second-seeded Argentine Juan Bautista Torres. Following his marathon three-hour qualifying match the previous day, Barsukov struggled to find his rhythm against the solid-serving Argentine.
Marko Topo also missed out on direct qualification, losing 6-4, 6-4 to Czech qualifier Dominik Recek, who reached the main draw of an ATP Challenger event for the first time in his career after eliminating his second seeded opponent of the qualifying tournament. Topo’s campaign, however, received a lifeline as he entered the main draw as a lucky loser following Choinski’s withdrawal. He will face fellow German Max Schoenhaus in Tuesday’s featured “Match of the Day,” scheduled for not before 5:00 p.m. on Centre Court.
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The opening day of the main draw promises plenty of German interest. Diego Dedura will launch play on Centre Court at 10:00 a.m. against Recek, before Tom Gentzsch takes on Brazilian qualifier Thiago Monteiro. Later in the day, Niels McDonald will meet Switzerland’s Jerome Kym.
On the Sparkassen Premium Court, Henri Squire begins his campaign against Argentina’s Federico Agustin Gomez, followed by Rudolf Molleker against Czech qualifier Maxim Mrva. Jamie Mackenzie, who received a Special Exempt after reaching last week’s Bonn Open final, will then face Denmark’s Elmer Moller.
Top seed Alex Molcan of Slovakia will also make his first appearance at this year’s Platzmann Open when he faces Taiwan’s Chun-Hsin Tseng in the third match on Centre Court.
