Alex Michelsen wasted little time in getting his debut campaign at the Moselle Open underway on Sunday.
The eighth seed at the indoor ATP 250 in Metz produced a clinical performance to breeze past French wild card Harold Mayot in 76 minutes. Michelsen saved all nine of the break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats, en route to a 6-3, 6-1 triumph.
“I think my backhand was the determining factor,” Michelsen said, when asked about the key to his victory. “I feel like I was just painting the lines with my backhand today, and that doesn’t always happen, but when it does it feels pretty good. My forehand return felt unbelievable as well, so that’s always a plus.”
Michelsen, who is second in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, is seeded at an ATP Tour event this week for the fourth time in his career, having reached two finals as a seeded player in 2024 (Newport, Winston-Salem).
[ATP APP]Metz-native Mayot applied pressure in the early stages but was unable to convert any of the eight break points he carved out in the third game. From there, Michelsen dialled in to race across the line and improve to 29-28 at tour-level in 2024.
The 20-year-old #NextGenATP star will next face either Richard Gasquet or Thiago Monteiro for a spot in the third round.
Earlier, home hope Corentin Moutet snapped his six-match winning streak after Sumit Nagal was forced to retire with the Frenchman leading 7-5, 4-0. Moutet held his nerve in a tight first set, then his trademark trickery and touch came to the fore in a dominant display in the early stages of the second.
After securing his first indoor win since 2022, Moutet will face Alexander Shevchenko or seventh seed Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round.
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