KOBLENZ, February 7, 2026
Tom Gentzsch has reached his first championship match on the ATP Challenger Tour at the 2026 Koblenz Tennis Open. The 22-year-old German emerged victorious from Saturday’s all-German semi-final with Christoph Negritu, winning 7-6(3), 7-6(3).
Gentzsch, the No. 7 seed of the first Challenger Tour tournament being held in Germany this season, fired 13 aces and won 73 per cent of his first-service points. The world No. 277 won nine points more than his compatriot to secure victory in two hours and three minutes.
“I think I made the right decisions in the decisive moments,” Gentzsch told Tennis TourTalk about the key the success in his match.
“I played a couple of quarterfinals as well as a semis at Genoa last year. It is really cool to reach my first final here in Germany. My family is here. I am not that far away from home. I makes fun to play here.”
Gentzsch enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2025, winning four titles on the ITF World Tennis Tour. Now, he is ready to achieve the next milestone.
Kotov holds off Schoenhaus
Gentzsch will take on Pavel Kotov in Sunday’s singles final. The Russian alternate ended the dream run of German wild card entry Max Schoenhaus. In his second semi-final in Koblenz after 2020, the 27-year-old Moscow native won 6-4, 6-0 in 67 minutes, breaking his opponent’s serve four times.
Into his first final since 2023
Pavel Kotov powers past Schoenhaus 6-4, 6-0 in Koblenz#ATPChallenger pic.twitter.com/2tSrfZugDl
— ATP Challenger (@ATPChallenger) February 7, 2026
Despite the loss, it was still a very positive week for the Schoenhaus in Koblenz. The 18-year-old reached his first ATP Challenger semifinal, marking an important milestone in his young career and underlining the progress he has made in recent months.
“Pavel has a lot of experience and played very mature tennis,” Schoenhaus told Tennis TourTalk afterwards. “Still, it was a good match, even if the score looks a bit more one-sided. We had a clear game plan, which we were able to implement quite well. Here and there I maybe could have put one or two more balls into play, but he gave me very few chances to get back into the match, and in the end that made the difference.”
Looking back on his breakthrough week, the German teenager had plenty of reasons to be satisfied. “I can be very happy with this week. I’m really glad I achieved this small milestone at this level,” Schoenhaus added. “I’m excited to see what I can still achieve this year. It also shows that the things we’re working on are the right ones. Even though the first round was very close and my opponent was already serving for the match, this is the reward for a good pre-season.”
Kotov and Gentzsch will meet for the first time. Kotov, who ranked world No. 50 in June 2024, is seeking his third ATP Challenger Tour career title, his first since 2022. Gentzsch could lift his maiden trophy.
