Daniel Altmaier has reached the second round of the TERRA WORTMANN OPEN for the first time in his career. In his fourth attempt in Halle, the 27-year-old cleared the opening hurdle for the first time on Monday afternoon. Altmaier defeated qualifier Nikoloz Basilashvili 7-5, 6-4 after a convincing performance.
“It’s important to start the tournament this way,” Altmaier said happily after the match, visibly relieved. “You always know that, no matter what the surface, the first round isn’t easy. When you practice things, you want to put them into practice, and that really worked well today.”
On paper, Altmaier was the favorite against the Georgian—currently ranked 118th in the world. However, the fact that Basilashvili is indeed a top player is evidenced by the fact that he was once ranked among the world’s top 20 in 2019. In Halle in 2021, he achieved his best result to date by reaching the semifinals.
The second match on the Center Court of the heristo-arena was dominated by the servers for long stretches of the first set. It wasn’t until he held a 5-4 lead that Altmaier managed to really put his opponent under pressure for the first time. With a thunderous forehand winner, he seized his first set point, but Basilashvili was able to fend off both that and the subsequent second chance to level the score at 5-5. Two games later, however, the German struck and converted his fourth set point to take the lead.
At the start of the second set, the Kempen native hit a bit of a slump and immediately fell behind. Altmaier quickly found his rhythm again, however. In the sixth game, he earned three break points and converted the very first one to level the score. After the change of ends, though, he squandered two chances to pull ahead 5-3.
Shortly thereafter, though, the moment finally arrived. At 5-4, the German earned his first match point with a bold net attack, on which the Georgian sent an easy forehand into the net. This sealed Altmaier’s first grass-court victory on German soil—the DTB star remains winless in Stuttgart. In the second round, Altmaier will now face Andrey Rublev or Hubert Hurkacz.
During the grass-court season, Altmaier will be coached for the first time by former pro Dustin Brown, who caused a sensation in Halle in 2014 with his victory over Rafael Nadal. “We’ve known each other since I was nine years old,” Altmaier said of the collaboration, which is initially planned to last until Wimbledon. “He’s really enjoying it. It’s just very harmonious and it’s working well.”
He said he’d been working with Brown on returning “much closer to the line” and using his slice more effectively. “I’ve played quite a bit of doubles lately, so I want to be more aggressive. […] Here (on grass, Ed.), I drop back first and then try to step up the pace. These are the kinds of things where you just try tactically to have more options to make life difficult for your opponents.”
Looking ahead to the rest of the tournament week, Altmaier said confidently: “I believe I can beat anyone, on any surface, and I’ve already proven that several times. I have to believe in it. The game is there.”
