For Jan-Lennard Struff The European clay court season is going excellently so far. Before the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome, Germany’s number two tennisnet.com talked about his top form, the Olympic Games and the second leg of the Champions League with Borussia Dortmund.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edited: May 7, 2024, 2:08 p.m
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Jan-Lennard Struff opens in Rome against Pedro Cachin
by Nikolaus Fink from Rome
By winning the tournament in Munich, Jan-Lennard Struff fulfilled a long-held dream. Shortly before his 34th birthday, the Warsteiner was able to celebrate his very first title on the ATP tour in the Bavarian capital. “I’m very happy about that,” said Struff before the start of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome tennisnet-Conversation goes back to his triumph in Munich.
But business – as hardly anyone knows better than veteran Struff – is tough. The Warsteiner didn’t have much time to celebrate as he had to defend a final from the previous year at the following event in Madrid. Struff also played well in Madrid, only losing in the tiebreak of the third set in the round of 16 against defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
So is Struff currently in the form of his life? “Last year I also had a great year and was in good form before the injury,” the German, who missed both Wimbledon and the US Open in 2023 due to a hip injury, does not want to make a final decision. But it is clear that he is “in good shape”.
Struff is threatened with an early hammer loss in Paris
Nevertheless, it currently looks as if Struff will tackle the French Open in Paris (May 26th to June 9th) unseeded. After the tournament in Madrid, the 34-year-old fell back to position 41 in the rankings. This circumstance doesn’t cause any stress for Struff: “I’ll give it my all. We’ll just have to see how it goes.”
The French Open will most likely not be Struff’s only trip to Roland Garros in 2024. The Olympic Games will take place in the Bois de Boulogne from July 27th to August 4th – and Struff doesn’t just want to compete in the individual in Paris.
“I would like to play doubles. We still have to decide internally who will play,” said Struff, who reached the quarter-finals with Alexander Zverev in Tokyo in 2021. A start alongside Germany’s number one seems possible again this year, as Zverev, as a top ten player in singles, would from the current perspective also have a starting place in doubles. A nation may field a maximum of two pairings.
Struff with good Olympic chances in the individual
Struff emphasizes that nothing has yet been decided regarding the Olympics. However, the Warsteiner considers starting in mixed doubles to be “difficult”. “I don’t think I would play three competitions. First I have to make sure I stay in the singles. I think I have a decent chance now.” The top 56 in the world rankings – the deadline is June 10th – qualify directly for the individual competition.
A good result in Rome would help. Struff opens against Pedro Cachin on Thursday, after which Monte Carlo winner Stefanos Tsitsipas could wait. “I have to look at the first match, the rest doesn’t matter,” says Germany’s number two, expecting a “difficult match” against Cachin. The Argentine recently forced Rafael Nadal into a deciding set in the third round in Madrid.
Things will be exciting for Struff on Tuesday too. In the evening, Borussia Dortmund will face Paris Saint-Germain away in the Champions League semi-finals. “I was there in the first leg, that was awesome,” remembers the BVB fan about the 1-0 win in the first leg. “I hope we move forward.”
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Struff Jan-Lennard