Doubles

Home favourites Krawietz/Puetz defend Hamburg crown

Luz/Matos win Bastad, Bhambri/Olivetti triumph in Gstaad

July 21, 2024

Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz are happy at home in Hamburg once again.

The German pair on Sunday claimed the title for the second straight year at the Hamburg Open, where they overcame third seeds Fabien Reboul and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 7-6(8), 6-2. Krawietz and Puetz saved a set point in the tie-break before clinching the opening set, and they then dominated the second set to seal the title at the clay-court ATP 500.

“It was a little bit less stressful in the second set but was very tight in the first,” said Puetz after the match. “We had some chances that we didn’t take. I thought they had some chances that they didn’t take, and then in the end the tie-break was 10-8. It could have gone either way.

“It was very hot, very humid, it was tough on everyone and tough to play. Definitely happy to be champion here again. To defend the title here in Hamburg is absolutely amazing and it was a great atmosphere.”

After prevailing in their maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with all-French combo Reboul and Roger-Vasselin, Krawietz and Puetz improved to 27-13 for the season. They did not a drop a set all week in Hamburg, where Puetz also lifted the trophy in 2021 with Michael Venus after beating Krawietz and Horia Tecau in the championship match.

With their first tour-level title of 2024, Krawietz and Puetz have risen one spot to sixth in the PIF ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings. They will hope to continue their good form at the upcoming Paris Olympics, where they will represent Germany together.

“I think we played a very good level here in Hamburg,” said Krawietz. “For the week before the Olympics, for us to go to the Olympics with this level, we hope we can continue [in this way]. Of course [in Paris] we will start from zero, and go match by match, point by point.”

Bhambri/Olivetti ‘find a way’ to Gstaad crown
Yuki Bhambri and Albano Olivetti’s fledgling partnership picked up a second ATP Tour title on Sunday at the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad. The third-seeded duo rallied past Ugo Humbert and Fabrice Martin 3-6, 6-3, 10-6 to clinch the title at the clay ATP 250.

With unpredictable weather forecast for Sunday afternoon in Gstaad, Olivetti was delighted to have finished the job with a 67-minute win in the Swiss Alps. The Frenchman and his Indian partner Bhambri, who first teamed in April and lifted a title together in Munich in their second event together, won 89 per cent (33/37) of points behind first serves, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

“We didn’t even know if we would have the chance to play today, but the weather was on our side to play the final,” said Olivetti. “We tried to keep focused since we got up. The match didn’t start very well for us. They had a good start. They played well and somehow we turned it around. We had a really good level in the second and the Match Tie-break, so I think it is a good win for us. Hopefully we can use it to continue like this.”

Bhambri added: “I think they came out strong. They played really well, served really well, so our main focus was to hang in there and wait for an opportunity. We knew if the scores were close, we might get an opportunity, because it’s not the easiest to close out matches here. So that’s what we did. We served better, started returning better in the second set, and found a way in the end.”