Rublev Rolls Into Third Round At The US Open

Andrey Rublev lost his first match of the ATP Tour’s resumption at last week’s Western & Southern Open. But the big-hitting Russian, who was red-hot before the pandemic hit, has wasted little time returning to form at the US Open.

The 10th seed eased into the third round at Flushing Meadows on Thursday, beating Frenchman Gregoire Barrere 6-2, 6-4, 7-6(4) after one hour and 51 minutes. He has not lost a set through two rounds.

Rublev’s only hiccup came when he was two service holds from winning in the third set. Barrere buckled down and played some of his best tennis to force a tie-break. But the favoured Rublev recovered to avoid going to a fourth set, striking 35 winners to only 23 unforced errors in his victory. He won 81 per cent of his first-serve points and only dropped serve twice.

The Russian began the 2020 season by winning his first 11 matches, lifting ATP Tour trophies in Doha and Adelaide. Rublev became the first player to win titles in the first two weeks of the season since Dominik Hrbaty in 2004.

With his powerful baseline game, Rublev figures to be a threat on the quick courts of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. The 22-year-old, who is at a career-high No. 14 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, will next play Italian Salvatore Caruso or alternate Ernesto Escobedo.

Did You Know?
Rublev, Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov on 2 March became the first Russian trio inside the Top 15 of the FedEx ATP Rankings at the same time in history (since 1973).

from Tennis - ATP World Tour https://ift.tt/2Z1uIOM