Tennis essentials, 28 October: Wawrinka retires, Ruud falls, Zverev escapes

Stan Wawrinka played in Basel the last match of a career that began in 2002, Casper Ruud left the same tournament in the first round, and Alexander Zverev needed 3 hours 5 minutes in Vienna to shake off a 20-year-old Spaniard. The day in tennis, in seven stories.

Wawrinka closes his career in Basel

Beaten 7-5, 7-6(2) by Jiri Lehecka on Tuesday night in the first round, Stan Wawrinka, 41, closed a career that began in 2002 and brought him three Grand Slam titles. “I will have a hangover, but not necessarily because of the alcohol,” he said at his last press conference, which We Love Tennis carries. Roger Federer sent him a final message. Our piece tells the story of the farewell evening.

Borges comes back on Ruud, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4

Priced at 1.45 with BetMGM before the match, Casper Ruud was overturned by Nuno Borges, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, in the first round. On this one, we saw no value to take: the Norwegian’s odds looked fair to us. The Borges-Ruud preview keeps the full reading of the duel.

Vienna: Zverev flirts with the exit, Alcaraz through in two

Alexander Zverev needed 3 hours 5 minutes to get past Martin Landaluce, 20: 7-5, 3-6, 7-6, the deciding tie-break won 13-11, after saving four match points. The German will become world No. 1 if he reaches the quarter-finals in Vienna, L’Équipe recalls. Carlos Alcaraz settled in faster, beating Karen Khachanov 6-4, 7-6(5).

Musetti does Fils a favour in the Masters race

After winning in Lyon last week, Lorenzo Musetti kept rolling by seeing off Frances Tiafoe 7-6, 7-5 in his opener. Tiafoe, a direct rival of Arthur Fils in the race to the Masters, now has only the Rolex Paris Masters left to score points, We Love Tennis notes. Fils plays Alex Michelsen on Thursday, a player he beat in Brussels last week. Our Musetti-Tiafoe preview had read the duel.

Tokyo: Rakhimova and Shnaider through, Osaka awaits Pohankova

In the last sixteen in Tokyo, Rakhimova beat Alexandrova 6-4, 4-6, 7-6, and Shnaider saw off Sasnovich 6-3, 5-7, 6-3. Naomi Osaka, who got past Jasmine Paolini, faces Mia Pohankova on Thursday, third match on Center Court. The Osaka-Pohankova preview is online with the order of play, and the Rakhimova-Alexandrova page keeps the reading of the finished match.

Kyrgios picks Kooyong for his comeback

Eligible to play again since 3 September, after a positive cocaine test and a one-month ban, Nick Kyrgios has set his date: the Kooyong Classic, an exhibition played from 12 to 14 January, a few days before the Australian Open. The field is already stacked, with Arthur Fils, Holger Rune, Lorenzo Musetti and defending champion Karen Khachanov, We Love Tennis details.

Paris La Défense prepares Monfils’ farewell

The Rolex Paris Masters moves in next week at Paris La Défense Arena, with Novak Djokovic’s return and the tribute prepared for Gaël Monfils. The tournament director, Cédric Pioline: “Listen Gaël, the decision is yours, but this is your moment. It is a unique occasion.” We Love Tennis carries his words.