Geerts Upsets Merida, Advances At Hamburg Ladies & Gents Cup

Michael Geerts (photo: Witters)

HAMBURG/STARNBERG, October 21, 2025

Michael Geerts headlined Tuesday’s first-round action at the Hamburg Ladies & Gents Cup by knocking out top seed Daniel Merida of Spain. The 30-year-old Belgian withstood eight aces from the Madrid native and broke his rival’s serve three times. Geerts won one point more than Merida to secure a 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(3) victory in two hours and 18 minutes.

Up next for the World No. 324 will be his compatriot Buvaysar Gadamauri. The 25-year-old qualifier beat Adrian Andreev of Bulgaria 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 25 minutes.

Other seeded players, who booked their spots in the second round of the ATP Challenger Tour 50 event are Federico Cina of Italy and Croatian Matej Dodig.

Stebe Wins All-German Clash Against Rising Star McDonald

In other action, a battle of generations between two German players took place: 34-year-old Cedrik-Marcel Stebe faced 17-year-old Niels McDonald, the reigning French Open junior champion. McDonald twice broke early in the first set, but Stebe fought back each time and eventually secured the decisive break at 5-4 to claim the opening set.

“My start was a bit slow, but I tried to stay with him and adjust to the conditions,” said Stebe after the match, acknowledging the challenge posed by his young opponent from Oldenburg. “The younger players are always hungry, they serve well, and their baseline game is really strong. You have to be at 100 percent focus — otherwise it gets tough,” the German veteran noted.

In the second set, both players held serve confidently until Stebe once again struck at 5-4, sealing the victory 6-4, 6-4. “I think experience made a big difference today – that’s still a key factor when playing against young guys,” Stebe reflected. “Those two breaks at the end were crucial. If Niels had served a bit better or made fewer errors, it could have been a lot closer.”

Despite the defeat, Stebe was full of praise for his teenage opponent: “For someone who’s only 17, he’s playing really impressive tennis.”

Hamburg Ladies & Gents Cup Tuesday Results