Umag, 25 July 2022 – Croatian representatives finished this year’s Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag singles tournament without a victory. After Mili Poljičak’s defeat on the first day of the tournament, the same fate awaited Dino Prižmić and Duje Ajduković.

Prižmić started his match in brilliant form, he was a break ahead three times in the first set against Spain's Bernabé Zapata Miralles, but then he suffered an injury and had to forfeit the match when the result was 4:6, 0:3. Ajduković was defeated by the 5th-seeded player, Slovak Alex Molčan, who won 6:2, 7:6 (2).

“I had trouble with my serve and a very low first-serve percentage from the very start. I lost the serve five or six times, which is very bad and it was my main issue,” said Ajduković, who recorded his first victory at an ATP tournament in Umag last year.

Duje had a lot of issues with his serve, and he kept it for the first time at 1:2 in the second set. Not long after, Molčan increased his lead to 4:2 and it seemed like a done deal, but the 21-year-old Ajduković managed to recover and made his way to a tie-break. However, he fell short and the Slovak player (his first time playing in Umag) passed through to the second round.

Prižmić opened his match very well, but when he asked for the physical therapist’s services when he was leading 4:3 (and a break point ahead), it was clear that the issue was serious.

“I felt a pain in my abdominal wall muscles, and I couldn’t move or serve any more. I’m sorry, but it is what it is,” said the 16-year-old Prižmić, still a junior. “What I was faced with today was definitely a higher quality of tennis when compared to junior matches; the opponents make less mistakes here.”

Prižmić is still the youngest player competing at the main round of an ATP tournament this year (until Tuesday this title was held by Chinese player Jungcheng Shang, who competed in Rio de Janeiro at 17 years and two months old). Had he won his match against Zapata Miralles, he would have been the youngest player with a victory at the Umag tournament, but for now that title remains in the hands of then 17-year-old Rafael Nadal.

In another match played yesterday, the champion of the Hamburg tournament, Italian Lorenzo Musetti, won 6:2, 3:6, 6:1 against Slovenian Aljaž Bedene.

The first round came to a close on Tuesday, so we now proceed to the second round. One of the favourites for winning the title, tenth ranked player Jannik Sinner, will face Spain’s Jaume Munar on Wednesday some time after 8 p.m. The third seeded player, Denmark's Holger Rune, also joins the action (on the central court), playing against Zapata Miralles.