Heroic fight: Seppi's career is over

Hundreds of fans from all parts of the country made a pilgrimage to the tennis hall in Ortisei on Tuesday to witness Andreas Seppi's last performance live. The family around his wife Michela, state governor Arno Kompatscher and, last but not least, coach Massimo Sartori were also sitting in the packed stands. They all looked excitedly at the center court, where their protégé was trying to extend his career a little longer. Although his opponent Yannick Hanfmann (ATP 154) prevented this, the joy prevailed in the end. The joy of a career that is unparalleled nationally and internationally. The final score of 7:5, 3:6, 4:6 in favor of his opponent was just a side note. Anyone who thought that Seppi would approach his last game without his usual bite was disappointed. The 38-year-old gave everything he had, constantly cheered himself on and did everything he could to leave the field victorious. After a balanced start, it was Hanfmann who was the first to gain an advantage. He benefited from the South Tyrolean's low serve rate and was able to exert a lot of pressure from the baseline and ran away to 5:2. When he found two set points on his own serve, the round seemed over. But Seppi didn't give up, broke and - after fending off two more set points with two aces - made it 5:5. Now it got loud in the stands. The audience encouraged the local hero, who now showed his best tennis. Inspired by the fans, Seppi managed another break - and closed the bag with 7:5. An up and down At the start of the second section, Seppi paid tribute to his exertions. He quickly fell 0-3 behind and almost suffered a double break as a result. But he didn't let up and quickly grabbed the break back. To the chagrin of his fans, however, he immediately gave it up. Hanfmann, who was now serving strongly, didn't let this lead be taken away from him and equalized in the sets. A real crime thriller began. In this, Seppi fought for the first break chance with a precise pass to the thunderous applause of the audience - and immediately used it. In a strenuous game, the Kalterer player then had several chances to pull away to 4-1. But instead the hemp man, who kept fighting, came back. This game proved to be groundbreaking. The German shifted up several gears, made no mistakes and broke Seppi. The decision? Not at all! The Kalterer rebelled again, he regained the lost service game, but immediately gave it up again. Emotional ending Hanfmann then kept a cool head as he erased two break chances and used his first match point after almost two hours. The disappointment was written all over Seppi's face when he thanked the fans for the minute-long standing ovation. He gave another speech before retreating to the cabin wing. That was the end of his tennis career. The South Tyrolean will not be officially bid farewell until Friday, when a party is planned for 20.30:XNUMX p.m.

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Heroic fight: Seppi's career is over

At the end of his active career, Andreas Seppi once again delivered a performance that he can be proud of at the Challenger tournament in Val Gardena on Tuesday evening. The veteran was able to cope with the fact that it wasn't enough to win in the end.

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