Mannarino finally back on the winning track!
It's been a long, long wait, too long even. But this time, it's happened. Adrian Mannarino has finally won back a match on the ATP circuit.
Despite a very successful start to the season in which the Frenchman had distinguished himself, notably in Australia (eighth finalist after beating Wawrinka and Shelton), he quickly slowed down. Disappointing in Miami, the Frenchman endured a simply dreadful clay-court season. As a result, after Roland-Garros, he had lost 10 of his last 11 matches, and was on a 7-match losing streak.
So, with the grass-court season upon us, historically the 35-year-old's best surface (62% win rate), it was urgent to get back on track. As such, Mannarino opted to play on grass at this week's Bois-le-Duc tournament.
Facing Stefano Napolitano (125th, qualifier) in the first round, 'Manna' went through all sorts of emotions, but came through in the end. The Frenchman's friability was rare, and he looked set to record his 8th straight defeat. Quickly trailing by a set and two breaks (6-3, 4-1), all seemed lost.
Fortunately, the "divine bald man" didn't give up and staged a remarkable comeback. Winning 12 of the last 16 games of the match, the world number 21 was finally able to taste victory again (3-6, 7-6, 6-2).
Having qualified for the last 16, Mannarino will now try to capitalize on this success to win on a much more regular basis. For a place in the quarter-finals, he will face Gijs Brouwer, who defeated Mensik in the first round.
's-Hertogenbosch 
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