Lehecka on Wawrinka's farewell: "I will never forget that match"
Jiri Lehecka ended Stan Wawrinka's career with a 7/5, 7/6 (7-2) win in the first round of the ATP 500 in Basel and said he will never forget the match. He faces Germany's Daniel Altmaier in the last 16.
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"Não acho que hoje seja o momento certo para discutir o que fiz de certo ou errado. Hoje é dia de celebrar o legado de Stan, sua carreira e tudo o que ele conquistou", disse Jiri Lehecka, horas depois de encerrar a carreira de Stan Wawrinka com um 7/5 e 7/6 (7-2) na primeira rodada do ATP 500 da Basileia.
O tcheco, de 24 anos — número 21 do mundo e oitavo cabeça de chave do piso sintético coberto —, preferiu falar do suíço de 41 anos. "Quero parabenizá-lo, desejar tudo de melhor e dizer que foi um prazer dividir a quadra com ele."
A cena não era inédita para ele. Em 2024, eliminou Rafael Nadal nas oitavas do Masters 1000 de Madri, na última partida do espanhol naquele torneio. "É um pouco estranho estar aqui neste momento, mas, ao mesmo tempo, é um prazer. Nunca esquecerei esta partida."
Lehecka contou que cresceu vendo Wawrinka levantar troféus. O suíço tem 16 títulos de ATP, três deles Grand Slams — Austrália 2014, Roland Garros 2015 e US Open 2016 —, além do ouro olímpico em duplas com Federer em Pequim 2008 e da Copa Davis de 2014. Mais de duas décadas de circuito terminaram diante de 9.200 pessoas na quadra central, com Wawrinka resistindo dois sets antes da ovação.
Nas oitavas, Lehecka pega o lucky-loser alemão Daniel Altmaier, 60º do ranking, contra quem tem retrospecto favorável. Wawrinka volta às quadras em 19 de dezembro, na exibição "One Last Backhand", ao lado de Federer, Andy Murray e Gael Monfils.
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