Stan Wawrinka said he is hoping to produce a “last push” in his career to challenge for tennis’ biggest titles again, after beating Britain’s Dan Evans to reach the Paris Masters second round yesterday.
The 35-year-old won the last of his three Grand Slam titles at the 2016 US Open but was then hit by multiple injuries and is now ranked 20th in the world. But the Swiss thinks he can still rediscover past glories in his final years on the ATP Tour. 
“I’m close to the end of my career,” he said after beating Evans 6-3, 7-6 (7/3). “But I also believe I have one last push that I really want to, again, one more time push myself to the limit, make the sacrifice that you need to make to be at my top, and I’m trying to do that. “I’m going to try to even push it more during the off-season and see what next year brings.”
Wawrinka, whose only Masters title came in 2014 at Monte Carlo, has not won an ATP event for more than three years. “I think in general my form has been going okay. It’s been going well. I’m playing well,” he added. “I still need to work on many, many aspects.” 
Wawrinka will face either Frenchman Gilles Simon or the US’ Tommy Paul next. Former Wimbledon runner-up Milos Raonic also booked a second-round place, beating Aljaz Bedene 6-3, 6-2, while Richard Gasquet won a match for the first time since the US Open by edging out Taylor Fritz in three sets.
On Monday, the Paris Masters got underway at a near-empty Bercy Arena amid France’s second coronavirus lockdown, with former champion Karen Khachanov being knocked out in the first round. Russian Khachanov was beaten 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 by Spanish qualifier Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Tournament organisers had expected to welcome 1,000 fans a day to the event, but instead had to refund the tickets when French President Emmanuel Macron announced France would reenter lockdown last week. The prize money on offer has been cut by more than 2mn euros ($2.33mn) from last year, when Novak Djokovic won the title.
In front of 15,000 vacant seats, the hum of the air conditioning was often the loudest noise on the main court, with even the players only allowed to have two members of their usually large entourage in attendance.
Khachanov, the only former winner in the draw with Djokovic absent, bowed out tamely to bring a disappointing season to a close. Spanish veteran Feliciano Lopez set up a second-round clash with top seed Rafael Nadal — back in Paris just weeks after lifting a record-extending 13th French Open title — by beating Serbian Filip Krajinovic 7-6 (13/11), 6-1.
Pablo Carreno Busta was another Spaniard to progress, seeing off home wildcard Hugo Gaston 6-3, 6-2. Carreno Busta is bidding to finish an excellent season personally on a high, having also reached the US Open semi-finals and Roland Garros last eight.
Frenchman Ugo Humbert beat in-form Norwegian Casper Ruud in three sets, while there were also wins for US Open quarter-finalist Alex de Minaur and Croatian 15th seed Borna Coric.

Results (x denotes seeding)
Second round: Marin Cilic (CRO) bt Corentin Moutet (FRA) — walkover 
First round: Yoshihito Nishioka (JPN) bt Pablo Andujar (ESP) 5-7, 6-4, 6-2; Stan Wawrinka (SUI x12) bt Dan Evans (GBR) 6-3, 7-6 (7/3); Richard Gasquet (FRA) bt Taylor Fritz (USA) 6-0, 3-6, 6-3; Lorenzo Sonego (ITA) bt Alexander Bublik (KAZ) 6-1, 6-4; Kevin Anderson (RSA) bt Laslo Djere (SRB) 5-2 -- retired; Pierre-Hugues Herbert (FRA) bt Tennys Sandgren (USA) 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4); Milos Raonic (CAN x10) bt Aljaz Bedene (SLO) 6-3, 6-2;  Feliciano Lopez (ESP) bt Filip Krajinovic (SRB) 7-6 (13/11), 6-1; Jordan Thompson (AUS) bt Federico Delbonis (ARG) 6-2, 6-3; Borna Coric (CRO x15) bt Marton Fucsovics (HUN) 7-6 (7/5), 6-1; Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP x9) bt Hugo Gaston (FRA) 6-3, 6-2; Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) bt Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO) 6-4, 6-2; Norbert Gombos (SVK) bt Marco Cecchinato (ITA) 6-2, 7-6 (7/2); Radu Albot (MDA) bt Hubert Hurkacz (POL) 7-5, 6-7 (5/7), 6-4; Benjamin Bonzi (FRA) bt Federico Coria (ARG) 6-2, 6-1; Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (ESP) bt Karen Khachanov (RUS x11) 6-3, 2-6, 6-2; Alex de Minaur (AUS x16) bt Stefano Travaglia (ITA) 6-4, 6-4; Marcos Giron (USA) bt Albert Ramos-Vinolas (ESP) 6-3, 4-6, 6-1; Marin Cilic (CRO) bt Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN x14) 6-0, 3-6, 6-3; Corentin Moutet (FRA) bt Salvatore Caruso (ITA) 3-6, 7-6 (7/2), 6-3; Ugo Humbert (FRA) bt Casper Ruud (NOR) 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7/1)