PARIS/WASHINGTON, June 3, 2023 (by Michael Dickens)
Daniel Altmaier showed a flair for the dramatic during his second-round upset of No. 8 seed Jannik Sinner at Roland Garros Thursday. The 79th-ranked German came back from the brink of defeat to garner a 6-7 (0), 7-6 (7), 1-6, 7-6 (4), 7-5 marathon victory on Court Suzanne-Lenglen to move into the third round against No. 28 seed Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria.
At 4-5 in the third set, the 24-year-old Kempen, Germany native saved two match points on Sinner’s serve, then was impressive in holding his own to win in the decider. Although he was unable to serve out the match at 5-4 and the 21-year-old Italian saved four match points in a topsy-turvy final game, Altmaier showed much determination – and let out a big roar – in closing out the five-hour, 26-minute triumph to reach the round of 32 for the second time at the French Open.
BATTLE ROYALE 👏
5 hours and 26 mins later, @daniel_altmaier outlasts Sinner in an epic 6-7(0), 7-6(7), 1-6, 7-6(4), 7-5 to make the #RolandGarros third round. pic.twitter.com/xS8iKKLzEX
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 1, 2023
The last game of the match lasted 16 points, including five match points for Altmaier and three break points for Sinner. Afterward, Sinner exited the court to cheers. Then, the crowd cheered so long and loudly for Altmaier before his on-court interview that he sobbed. “I just love the game of tennis,” he said.
After securing victory, the tearful but appreciative Altmaier was asked by Marion Bartoli how he managed to stay focused while saving Sinner’s match points. He explained: “Playing every point you can with the best effort, that’s what keeps you in reality. I was just thinking that, and the competition says it all. We’ve had historic matches with so many match points. … I don’t know if you can call this an ‘historical’ match, but I think it was one to remember.”
What it means 🧡
Take a bow @daniel_altmaier!#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/lhYKiiNQht
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 1, 2023
When one looks back at the longest match thus far at this year’s clay-court fortnight and fifth longest in Roland Garros history, which included Altmaier’s fourth-set great escape followed by his calm-under-pressure performance in the fifth-set when it mattered most, it was the first five-set win of his career as well as his second Top-10 win at Roland Garros.
In his press conference, Altmaier said: “The emotions were crazy. And I think which was insane was obviously the crowd, and I thank the fans, you know, for the love of this game.”
Altmaier, the son of a Ukrainian father and a Russian mother, is enjoying a great stretch of play during the 2023 European clay season, which includes reaching his first ATP Masters 1000 quarterfinal in Madrid last month. He’s 6-4 on clay and 7-10 overall in tour-level play in 2023. Earlier, the German right-hander earned a straight-set win over Switzerland’s Marc-Andrea Huesler to record his first Grand Slam win since reaching the fourth round at the 2020 French Open in his major tournament debut.
In 2020, Altmaier came through qualifying to defeat No. 30 seed Jan-Lennard Struff of Germany in the second round and World No. 8 Matteo Berrettini of Italy, both in straight sets, to record the biggest win of career and lone Top-10 victory before beating Sinner.
Pictures you can feel 🔥#RolandGarros | @daniel_altmaier pic.twitter.com/XeJG7Rv4BH
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 1, 2023
“In the past months, me and my team have been just putting so much effort in, all together,” said Altmaier, who has risen to No. 56 in the ATP Live Rankings — just three spots below his career-best of No. 53 reached in May 2022 — after climbing 23 places by reaching the third round against Dimitrov. “I can just say to everybody that we play here, but behind us we have such a strong team. That’s why this victory is a team effort.”
Altmaier, who is coached by former World No. 8 Alberto Mancini and trains in Argentina, has come a long way since reaching his first ATP Tour quarterfinal at age 18 in 2017 in Antalya, Turkey. He was ranked No. 210. However, a series of shoulder and hip injuries derailed his progress as a professional. After losing a five-setter to Sinner in the first round at the US Open while ranked 93rd last year, Altmaier spent the remainder of the season playing Challenger events on clay and won consecutive tournaments in Lima, Peru and Guayaquil, Ecuador. This year, he has split his time between playing Challenger and tour-level events. He won a Challenger 125 in Sarasota, Fla., and reached the quarterfinals in Madrid as a lucky loser, scoring wins over fellow Germans Oscar Otte and Yannick Hanfmann and Spaniard Jaume Munar.
As Altmaier told the ATP Tour website in Madrid: “Maybe I have the most experience on clay. Definitely the most matches if you see my stats probably, but I do enjoy every part of the circuit because I think my game suits any surface. I really want to take advantage of this as well. I maybe have more experience on clay, but I wouldn’t pick one favorite surface.”
Match of the day so far?
Altmaier upsets Sinner in a five-set blockbuster.
Watch the highlights ⬇️#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/e4sUPDsLC6
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 1, 2023
Sinner put the match with Altmaier into perspective when he said at the conclusion of his press conference: “You know, these matches you can win or you can lose. Sometimes, you’re a little bit lucky. Sometimes no. But [Daniel] played good, you know, so I’m very happy for him.”
Altmaier, who is fluent in German, Russian and English, summed up his feelings during his press conference in a simple but heartfelt manner. “I think personally my journey has always been the fighting experience, you know, that I’m showing on the court or the character I am,” he said. “So, even if there are difficult times, obviously there have been difficult times like everybody has, but I do have a strong character, which is pushing me daily.
“So, I think that the process has been, yeah, I was new at the Tour; now I am since two years already on the tour. I’m probably not having the greatest results, but everybody has his own progress, and here I am right now.”
