In 2002, he regularly competed in Challenger events, reaching two finals, but losing in both attempts to Alexander Popp in Heilbronn, Germany and to Luis Horna in Fürth, Germany. He reached his first ATP Tour quarterfinal in the 2002 Internationaler Raiffeisen Grand Prix, defeating Sargis Sargsian and Andrea Gaudenzi in straight sets, before losing to eventual champion Nicolás Lapentti. However, he did better in the 2002 Croatia Open by reaching the semifinals, defeating Vincent Spadea, Agustín Calleri, and Victor Hănescu, before losing to eventual champion Carlos Moyá. He also won his first Grand Slam match at the 2002 US Open over Jack Brasington, before losing to Nicolás Massú in four sets. At the 2002 CA Tennis Trophy, he earned one of the biggest wins of his career by defeating then world no. 2 Tommy Haas to reach the quarterfinals, before losing to Jiří Novák in two sets.