In Tulln

Neumayer hopes for first Challenger title

Lukas Neumayer(Bild: GEPA)

Lukas Neumayer has reached the final of a Challenger tournament for the first time this season and for the third time in total. The 22-year-old from Salzburg defeated the German Rudolf Molleker 6:4, 6:3 at the ATP 100 Challenger in Tulln on Saturday and will be fighting for his first title at this level on Sunday.

He knows his opponent in the final well, as Jan Choinski from Great Britain has also been training with Günter Bresnik recently.

"I am extremely happy. I didn't come here with such mega expectations because I haven't played so well here in recent years," Neumayer told APA. After a very good first match, however, he was able to take the positive energy with him. "Every match has gotten better and now I'm playing with a lot of confidence. I hope I can take that with me again tomorrow."

Neumayer managed the decisive break against Molleker, who is almost two years older, in the first set to make it 3:2 in sometimes very windy and hot conditions. Despite a chance to break back at 5:4, the man from Salzburg took the first set in 33 minutes. In the second, he managed the break to 4:3 and another to 6:3.

A large part of Neumayer's family, who had arrived at short notice, also joined in the cheers of the spectators. His mother and two siblings broke off a camping vacation in Croatia. They also drove straight to Tulln at the insistence of their eight-year-old brother Philipp, himself a tennis enthusiast. And their dad also canceled a tennis championship match and came to the garden city. "I'm extremely happy when they come to watch me. Philipp wants to be a professional one day and plays every day."

Neumayer has been working with former decathlete Dominik Distelberger since the end of 2023, an important building block for him. "We've made some gains, especially in terms of strength. You can also see on the pitch that I have more muscles, which is extremely important," said Neumayer, who does not yet feel at his limit after four games.

Not even for the near future. "Over the last few months, I've resolved that I'd like to be in the qualifiers in Australia, so I'm on the right track," said the man from Salzburg. "My goal now is to win the third final." And in this final he will face Choinski (6:4, 6:4 against Jakub Nicod/CZE), who he naturally knows better. "I will concentrate more on myself. If I play well, I know I can win."

Yuriy Rodionov in the final
Neumayer in Tulln and Jurij Rodionov in Cassis send out important signals for Austrian tennis with their appearances in the final, especially before Dominic Thiem's retirement and after Sebastian Ofner's injury. Neumayer agrees: "Extremely important for the sport. We have some really good youngsters who have the chance to make it into the top 100 in the next few years."