Deja vu: Neumayer crashes out in Kitzbühel again in 1st Round

For Lukas Neumayer, the Generali Open in Kitzbühel ends in the first round.

The 23-year-old from Salzburg had to admit defeat to German Kitzbühel specialist Yannick Hanfmann after 1 hour and 44 minutes with a score of 6:7(5), 4:6. As was the case last year, the world number 52 proved too strong for the Austrian ace.

In the first set, both players initially engaged in an even duel. For a long time, break chances were rare, until Neumayer suddenly struck at 5:5 and broke the favourite's serve.

The Austrian then had the opportunity to serve for the set and earned three set points, but could not convert any of them. Hanfmann immediately hit back, saved himself into the tie-break, and prevailed there 7:5.

Hanfmann Clinical

The missed set point clearly affected Neumayer at the start of the second set. Although the Salzburg native initially fended off a break point, he had to surrender his serve shortly after, making it 1:2.

Hanfmann then expertly leveraged his experience, once again impressing with a strong serve and never relinquishing his lead. With a total of 16 aces, the German secured the 6:4 victory and advanced to the round of 16.

There, the 34-year-old will face either the eighth-seeded Argentinian Juan Manuel Cerundolo or his compatriot Marco Trungelliti.