Anderson begins comeback with first round win at Hall of Fame Open

The former two-time Grand Slam runner-up will next face Gijs Brouwer for a place in the quarter-finals.

Image Credit: AI / Reuters / Panoramic

July 19, 2023

Former world No 5 Kevin Anderson, back on the tour for the first time since March 2022, made a winning return with a first round win at the Hall of Fame Open in Newport on Tuesday.

The 37-year-old South African scored a 6-3, 6-2 win over Gabriel Diallo, ranked No 141 in the world. The big-serving Anderson was helped by 11 aces in the victory and also won 92 per cent of his first serve points.

First win in 17 months ⚡@KAndersonATP through to R2 with a clinical 6-3 6-2 performance on his return to tennis!#InfosysHallOfFameOpen pic.twitter.com/tqbqr1p0vA
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) July 18, 2023

The former two-time Grand Slam runner-up will next face Gijs Brouwer for a spot in the quarter-finals.

“Coming back now, honestly, there’s a lot of uncertainties,” Anderson said prior to his win as quoted by the ATP Tour website. “I don’t have a ranking, I’m relying on potentially getting a few wild cards during the summer. So I’m going to come out and compete, for sure. But to be honest, the result isn’t my primary goal. The primary goal is really to learn through this process. There’ll be a lot of different challenges to face along the way that I’m really kind of keeping my eyes focussed on and there’s a lot of experiences that you come across and as much as you can keep learning from them, I think that’s one of the keys. That’s what I try to do, so that’s what I’ll be doing as much as I can as long as I have some opportunities to keep playing.”

“I don’t know where it’s going to go, I don’t have a ranking…but let’s give this a shot.”

Two-time major finalist Kevin Anderson 🇿🇦 gets his first ATP Tour main draw win in 17 months on the Newport grass…

(Reporting made possible by @dunloptennis 🙌) pic.twitter.com/A0Hv2vEjag
— TennisONE App (@TennisONEApp) July 18, 2023