The Hague, the Netherlands, June 14, 2013 – Philip Gabathuler and Jonas Weingart eliminated third seeded Phil Dalhausser and Sean Rosenthal Friday in the first knockout round of the Transavia The Hague Grand Slam. The new Swiss combination was wiped away in the first set 21-8, but made a spectacular comeback: 22-20 17-15.
After the last whistle Gabathuler (30) and Weingart (27) looked somewhat shocked. Weingart: “It was a bit of a surprise after losing the first set like that. They really served us from the court and our reception was really bad.”
Two match points for USA
But the Swiss team fought back to take the second set. “We played with more precision and a few strong serves at the right moment helped for sure.” In the tiebreak the Americans, who started the season with gold at the Fuzhou Open, had their first match point at 14-13 and again at 15-14. But the Swiss dug their heels in the sand and after two out of court balls by the Americans at 15-15 they ended up with the victory.
“They cleaned up their game really good”, Rosenthal said after the match. “We are the better team, but with this wind you can never tell.” Weingart admitted that playing in windy conditions is different. “But it’s always nice to win against a top team.”
New team
Weingart and Gabathuler just recently teamed up. Gabathuler spent the past years with Jan Schnider and Weingart used to play with Martin Laciga, who retired. Their best result this year was ninth in Corrientes. Neither of them won a medal on the World Tour yet. “We need a bit of time. We are still in the beginning, but it’s good to see we are at a level to beat the top teams”, Gabathuler said.
Their next opponents are Austria’s Clemens Doppler and Alexander Horst. Weingart: “We know them very well, we practiced with them in Tenerife, but from now on there are no easy matches.”
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