Neumayer made a courageous start to the match and attempted to trouble Menšík with clever serving and plenty of variety. However, the current World No. 16 put the Austrian under pressure, particularly on his second serve, and impressed with patient yet powerful tennis. Despite Neumayer’s spirited resistance, he conceded two breaks in the opening set and lost it 6–2.
Neumayer also felt the effects of his opponent’s strong returning early in the second set, dropping his opening service game. The Austrian continued to battle, produced several entertaining rallies with Menšík and enjoyed the vocal support of the crowd, who repeatedly encouraged him with chants. Ultimately, however, Neumayer was unable to find a decisive answer to the high level of an opponent ranked 152 places above him and was beaten 6–2, 6–2.
“I was never really able to put him under pressure”
“It was a difficult match. He played extremely well, and I found it difficult to get into the rallies on his serve, even though returning is normally one of my strengths. Conceding an early break in both sets obviously did not help either. I was never really able to put him under pressure,” Neumayer said after the match.
Despite the defeat, the Austrian gained valuable experience from his first encounter with such a highly ranked opponent: “You could see that there is still a considerable difference in terms of pace. I was able to compete with him from the baseline, but his serve was the biggest challenge today. It was my first match against a Top 20 player, and matches like this help you enormously on your way up.”
The Erste Bank Open are not over yet for Lukas Neumayer. Thanks to a wildcard, he will also compete in the doubles event alongside Jurij Rodionov.
Jakub Menšík will now face the winner of the match between French qualifier Adrian Mannarino and Ignacio Buse of Peru in the round of 16.
Fery advances to the round of 16 following retirement
The all-British encounter lasted only a short time. With Arthur Fery leading 5–1, Jacob Fearnley retired, sending his compatriot through to the round of 16. Fery will face the winner of the match between Lorenzo Musetti (ITA) and Frances Tiafoe (USA/6).
Darderi wins all-Italian clash
The second match featured Italians Luciano Darderi and Matteo Arnaldi. The contest remained evenly balanced for long stretches, with both players producing confident service games. Darderi was the first to create break opportunities during the opening set but was initially unable to convert them. A few games later, he finally secured the decisive break to take the set 7–5.
Darderi carried that momentum into the second set and put Arnaldi under pressure with two early breaks. His compatriot was unable to recover from the deficit, allowing Darderi to win the second set 6–2 and book his place in the next round.
It was only Darderi’s second tour-level indoor victory. His previous success indoors also came at the Erste Bank Open, against Dominic Thiem in 2024. Darderi will now face the winner of the match between Tommy Paul (USA/7) and Andrey Rublev in the round of 16.
Tien ousts Van Assche
Luca Van Assche (FRA) and Learner Tien (USA) contested Monday’s final match on Centre Court. The encounter featured long, intense rallies and numerous break opportunities for both players. Tien proved more clinical in the decisive moments, winning the crucial points to secure a 6–3, 6–1 victory and a place in the round of 16, where he will face Alex de Minaur (AUS/5).
