Stan Wawrinka got off to a winning start at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters with a 7-6 (7-2) 7-5 win over Phillip Kohlschreiber on a sunny morning in the Centre Court of the Monte-Carlo Country Club.
Kohlschreiber got an early break in the opening game of the match but Wawrinka broke straight back. The first set came down to the tie-break where Wawrinka clinched the tie-break 7-2.
Wawrinka broke at the start of the second set and opened up a 3-1 lead. Kohlschreiber broke back in the sixth game for 3-3. Kohlschreiber held his serve in a hard-fought ninth game for 5-4.
Wawrinka broke again in the 11th game for 6-5 before serving out for the match in the next game in 1 hour and 37 minutes. The 2015 Roland Garros champion converted just 3 of his 13 break point chance
Wawrinka has won his 16th match win of the 2016 season in which he has lifted two titles in Chennai and Dubai.
Wawrinka is looking to win his second title in Monte-Carlo two years after his first triumph at Masters 1000 level over his compatriot Roger Federer. Wawrinka will face Frenchman Gilles Simon. The Lausanne player leads 3-2 in his previous five head-to-head matches against the Frenchman.
