Stan the Man Wawrinka — US Open Semifinalist, in Pictures

Every time Stanislas Wawrinka has an awesome match (which is quite often these days), TennisInsideOut.com gets a surge in hits from tennis fans wanting to know more about this savvy Swiss player with the killer backhand. Now that Stan’s beaten defending US Open champ Andy Murray in the Quarters to get to his first Slam semifinal, we decided to add some more goodies to the site for curious peeps and longtime Stan-lovers alike.

Today on ESPN, tennis legend John McEnroe slathered praise on Stan’s signature shot, the one-handed backhand winner. A guest in the commentary booth, Stan agreed he’s most comfortable with his backhand, which he aims down lines and into corners with a marksman’s precision.

When things get really intense, Stan takes that backhand airborne…

In his stint with the commentators today, Stan did add that despite the awesomeness of his backhand, he felt the way to beat the top guys was by being lethal with his forehand.

All that power and variety on the serve doesn’t hurt either…

His path to the US Open semis was also made possible by his deft hands at the net…

Another key component to Stan’s game is his strength, agility, speed, and endurance to run down every ball possible and get it back in play–ideally with enough zip to win the point.

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What else do you need to know about Stan? Well…he has artfully tousled bed head that is somehow continuously artfully tousled, even in tough, sweaty matches…

…and the occasional ab flashes reveal that those “dad bod” descriptions of Stan are incredibly erroneous…

And Stan fans know he has many other fine attributes…

…including a heavy dose of sass in his sense of humor, his tennis style, and even his posture…

And his goofy, fun side can really come out when he’s playing doubles with his BFF, the — as Stan puts it — the “good-kind-of-crazy” Frenchman, Benoit Paire.

So, there you have it, Stan the Man in pictures. If you’re not just here because of the awesome tennis, it’s because he’s just freakin’ adorable.

You might also enjoy: Stan Wawrinka: The Other Guy and Wawrinka, Nieminen, Kohlschreiber, Youzhny: Doubles Behind the Loo.

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PHOTOS: c2013 Valerie David, for TennisInsideOut.com