Satral Continues Strong Form In Banja Luka

After a difficult first half of 2016, Jan Satral has rebounded strongly and is playing the best tennis of his career.

The 26 year old from the Czech Republic is at a career-high Emirates ATP Ranking of No. 182 after a string of impressive results in the past three months. After winning three main draw matches in Challengers in the first six months of the year, he’s gone 8-3 in his past four Challenger events.

Competing at this week’s $75,000 ATP Challenger Tour event in Banja Luka, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Satral reached the quarter-finals before losing to fellow Czech player and fourth seed Adam Pavlasek. But despite the loss, he had only good things to say about the tournament.

“I’m in Banja Luka for the second time and really like it here,” said Satral. “The club and the city are really nice, the people from tournament are so friendly and always trying to make us feel like we’re at home. There are a lot of people watching us play every match as well. I’ll definitely come back again.”

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Satral won his first ATP Challenger Tour title in July at the $50,000 event in Marburg, Germany, then qualified for his first ATP World Tour main draw weeks later at the German Tennis Championships 2016. The following month, Satral qualified for his first Grand Slam at the US Open and won a round in the main draw. 

Despite all his recent success, Satral said his most satisfying moment was a loss. He reflected on his second-round match at the US Open against Gael Monfils, which was played on Arthur Ashe Stadium, as a motivating moment to continue producing solid results.

“The US Open was an amazing two weeks for me,” said Satral. “Coming back from two sets down against Mackenzie McDonald gave me a lot of confidence for the next matches in my career and playing a match in Arthur Ashe Stadium against Monfils was a dream come true . I also just had a really nice time in New York City with my girlfriend.”

With minimal points to defend the rest of the year, Satral hopes to continue pushing towards the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings.

“I feel really good on court now and am enjoying every moment in training, which is very important for me. If I’m good in my mind, I can play my best tennis,” said Satral. “Now that I have these feelings, I’m satisfied with my game and hope for more good results.”