Rublev recovers from a bad start to win Russian showdown with Medvedev at ATP Finals

By Online Desk

TURIN: Andrey Rublev brushed off a string of missed opportunities and his frustration to earn a dramatic victory against Daniil Medvedev at the ATP Finals on Monday.

In a thrilling clash, Rublev recovered from squandering seven set points in the first set as he shook off his disappointment to earn a statement 6-7(7), 6-3, 7-6(7) victory on his fifth match point in Turin, according to the match report by ATP staff uploaded online.

The 25-year-old was at his heavy-hitting best against the fourth seed in his opening Red Group match. He struck 25 winners across the second and third sets, penetrating Medvedev’s defence in the fast indoor conditions with his flat and precise groundstrokes, before he outlasted Medvedev in an epic 37-shot rally to finally seal victory on his fifth match point in the third-set tie-break, the report said.

“I was thinking about the US Open, because when we played in the quarter-finals in 2020, I think I was 5/1 in a tie-break, also something like 6/2, but I was leading something similar in a tie-break,” Rublev said. “But when I lost that set, I couldn’t play anymore, and I was thinking it cannot happen the same [again], I have to change something. I have to keep playing, because if I win one set, even if I lose in three sets, it’s still good, because here you have a group. So you have to fight for every point, every game, and I was able to win.

“The final tie-break, the rallies that we had there were crazy. The last rally, we had I don’t know, 30 shots. I was cramping a bit already, but I was thinking ‘One more, one more’. You have to keep playing. For sure he felt the same, so just keep playing if you have the chance, just go for it’. In the end I was able to win,”

Delighted with his efforts, Rublev dropped to the floor after a thrilling two-hour 31-minute win. With this win, Rublev’s head-to-head record against Medvedev has improved to 2-4, ANI reported.

“Peace peace peace is all we need,” Rublev wrote on the television camera on court at the end of the match, echoing his call for peace in Ukraine when he won in Dubai in February, just after the Russian invasion, AFP reported.

The other game in the Red Group on Monday sees Novak Djokovic taking on Stefanos Tsitsipas with the Greek needing to win every match he plays this week to become year-end world number one.

(With inputs from ATP, ANI and AFP)

<br /> TURIN: Andrey Rublev brushed off a string of missed opportunities and his frustration to earn a dramatic victory against Daniil Medvedev at the ATP Finals on Monday.</p> <p>In a thrilling clash, Rublev recovered from squandering seven set points in the first set as he shook off his disappointment to earn a statement 6-7(7), 6-3, 7-6(7) victory on his fifth match point in Turin, according to the match report by ATP staff uploaded online.</p> <!-- WP QUADS Content Ad Plugin v. 2.0.81 --> <div class="quads-location quads-ad843 " id="quads-ad843" style="float:none;margin:0px 3px 3px 3px;padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;" data-lazydelay="0"> <!-- WP QUADS - Quick AdSense Reloaded v.2.0.81 Content AdSense async --> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block;" data-ad-format="auto" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7550963679842137" data-ad-slot="4374041191"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});</script> <!-- end WP QUADS --> </div> <p>The 25-year-old was at his heavy-hitting best against the fourth seed in his opening Red Group match. He struck 25 winners across the second and third sets, penetrating Medvedev’s defence in the fast indoor conditions with his flat and precise groundstrokes, before he outlasted Medvedev in an epic 37-shot rally to finally seal victory on his fifth match point in the third-set tie-break, the report said.</p> <p>“I was thinking about the US Open, because when we played in the quarter-finals in 2020, I think I was 5/1 in a tie-break, also something like 6/2, but I was leading something similar in a tie-break,” Rublev said. “But when I lost that set, I couldn’t play anymore, and I was thinking it cannot happen the same [again], I have to change something. I have to keep playing, because if I win one set, even if I lose in three sets, it’s still good, because here you have a group. So you have to fight for every point, every game, and I was able to win.</p> <p>“The final tie-break, the rallies that we had there were crazy. The last rally, we had I don’t know, 30 shots. I was cramping a bit already, but I was thinking ‘One more, one more’. You have to keep playing. For sure he felt the same, so just keep playing if you have the chance, just go for it’. In the end I was able to win,”</p> <p>Delighted with his efforts, Rublev dropped to the floor after a thrilling two-hour 31-minute win. With this win, Rublev’s head-to-head record against Medvedev has improved to 2-4, ANI reported.</p> <!-- WP QUADS Content Ad Plugin v. 2.0.81 --> <div class="quads-location quads-ad843 " id="quads-ad843" style="float:none;margin:0px 3px 3px 3px;padding:0px 0px 0px 0px;" data-lazydelay="0"> <!-- WP QUADS - Quick AdSense Reloaded v.2.0.81 Content AdSense async --> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block;" data-ad-format="auto" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7550963679842137" data-ad-slot="4374041191"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});</script> <!-- end WP QUADS --> </div> <p>“Peace peace peace is all we need,” Rublev wrote on the television camera on court at the end of the match, echoing his call for peace in Ukraine when he won in Dubai in February, just after the Russian invasion, AFP reported.</p> <p>The other game in the Red Group on Monday sees Novak Djokovic taking on Stefanos Tsitsipas with the Greek needing to win every match he plays this week to become year-end world number one.</p> <p>(With inputs from ATP, ANI and AFP)<br />