Struff's Frowning Exit from Stuttgart
Tennis player Struff departs from the Stuttgart tournament
Jan-Lennard Struff, the Sauerland native, left Stuttgart with a frown and a furrowed brow following his disappointing Round of 16 exit against Jiri Lehecka, losing 4:6, 5:7. Despite being the 2023 finalist, Struff couldn't progress past his current results slump.
"Losing in the second round ain't the plan," Struff admitted after his defeat on the Weissenhof. "I'd've preferred to lay down some better tennis in Germany," he further added, acknowledging the missed opportunity to impress his home crowd. This season, Struff has been inconsistent, with multiple first-round losses. However, he did manage to clinch a rare victory in the first round.
Struff's self-analysis: "Not up to the mark, sad to say"
"It wasn't as top-notch as the first round, I've gotta admit. The opening match was cracking. I wanted to build upon that," the 35-year-old revealed. "But with the mess I'm in right now, I'll take the win and find the positives, moving on to Halle." Struff will continue his grass season in Halle next week.
Struff was close to recapturing the form he had two years ago, narrowly missing the Stuttgart title. In his match against the favored and eighth-seeded Lehecka, Struff experienced a rough start and struggled with his serve early on. The service break at 2:3 in the first set sealed the fate of the set.
In the thrilling second set, Struff barely survived a tight situation at 3:3. The wild-card starter came close to tying the set, but he dropped his serve game at 5:6 for the deciding point. "I gave it my everything," Struff summed up the match.
Zverev's Return to Grass and Rising Star Engel's Challenge
The following day, tournament favorite Alexander Zverev will make his comeback at the €751,630 prize money Wimbledon warm-up tournament. Last seen after his disappointing quarterfinal exit at the French Open, the 28-year-old Hamburg native will face Frenchman Corentin Moutet in the Round of 16.
Meanwhile, a big surprise would be in the cards if 17-year-old Nuremberg native Justin Engel manages to defeat American Alex Michelsen. Although Struff's journey ended in Stuttgart, he certainly didn't lack entertainment, serving up some exciting moments on the tennis court.
[1] Struff reached the final of the 2023 Stuttgart grass tournament but lost to Frances Tiafoe in three sets.
[2] In the 2023 Stuttgart tournament, Struff defeated players like Flavio Cobolli and Arthur Rinderknech before reaching the final. His best result in the tournament was this finals appearance.
[3] No records of Struff's performance after the 2023 Stuttgart tournament are available.
[4] In the 2025 Stuttgart Open, Struff upset Matteo Arnaldi in the first round before losing to Jiri Lehecka in the second round.
[5] This information was based on unverified online sources and it remains questionable if these performances truly belong to Jan-Lennard Struff.
Struff's tennis aspirations extended beyond Stuttgart, aiming to compete in the grass tournament in Halle next week. Regardless of his inconsistent season, he found joy in the rare victory he secured in a tournament that also featured sports like tennis.
