In a thriller in three sentences could Andrey Rublev the final of the ATP Masters tournament in Madrid against Happy Auger-Also win and thus win his second Masters title after Monte Carlo last year.
by Dietmar Kaspar
last edited: May 5, 2024, 9:55 p.m
© Getty Images
With his narrow three-set win against FAA, Andrey Rublev won his second Masters title.
Here you can read the entire match in the live ticker
So far, Felix Auger-Aliassime has been the master of entertaining affairs at the ATP 1000 tournament in Madrid. However, the Canadian benefited from the early retirement of his counterpart against the two Czechs Jakub Mensik and Jiri Lehecka, and the South Tyrolean Jannik Sinner even did not appear at all in the quarter-finals. Against his final opponent Andrey Rublev, all five games so far have been very close, four times they went the full distance, with the Russian winning four of the clashes played so far.
In top shape, apparently rested with only seven sets played leading up to the final, Auger-Aliassime started the final and started with a bang. Without losing a point, the Canadian took his opponent’s serve right from the start and confirmed the break with a confident service game. Rublev also had to fend off a break ball in the second service game, but was ultimately able to serve for the first time. As a result, both players each gave their serve once, with the 23-year-old Auger-Alliassime then serving for the set after a missed set point when the score was 5:3. Things got exciting again at the start and the Davis Cup winner even had to fend off a breakball before he secured the set win with a longline forehand winner after a strong serve.
In the second set, both protagonists continued to act predominantly from the baseline. As Rublev improved, the intensity of the rallies steadily increased. Without losing serve, with a break chance for the Russian in the sixth game, Auger-Aliassime served at 5:6 to reach the tiebreak. Rublev won two running set points, the second of which he was able to use for himself.
The world number 8 started in the deciding set. with an impressive service game and secured the game win with a forehand winner without losing a point, while Auger-Aliassime had to fend off two break opportunities in his first service game. The Canadian achieved this feat again in the fourth game and sealed the fourth point win in a row with a service winner to equalize again. During the break when the score was 2:3, the Canadian had his thigh treated, but in the following service game he spectacularly turned 0:30 with four successfully played points in a row. Rublev was also more confident in his own service afterwards, but Auger-Aliassime was still able to keep up with more effort, but some spectacular forehands. Similar to the second round, Rublev again earned a break chance in the twelfth game, equivalent to the first match point. With a double fault, Auger-Aliassime gave his 26-year-old opponent 4:6, 7:5. 7:5 success after 2:49 hours.
In the on-court interview, the happy winner commented: “Winning the title means an incredible amount to me. The last few weeks with the three first-round defeats were a difficult time for me. I’ve been battling a fever throughout the week, so I’d like to thank my medical team for making everything possible to get me through this tournament.”
For Rublev, winning the title in Madrid is his second success at Masters level. After being considered the king of the 500cc tournaments for a long time, he took the crown in Monte Carlo last year. In the world rankings, the Russian overtakes Stefanos Tsitsipas and Casper Ruud and thus improves to position 6 in the ATP rankings. By reaching the final, Auger-Aliassime climbed 15 places to 20th place.
Here is the individual tableau from Madrid
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Rublev Andrey Auger-Alias Felix