It’s quite a return to the forefront. While he no longer really knew where he was when he arrived in Madrid, Andrey Rublev went to collect his second Masters 1000 trophy on Sunday with a magnificent effort. Very badly started in his final, he finally overcame a courageous Félix Auger-Aliassime in three sets (4-6, 7-5, 7-5) and almost three hours of play (2h49 precisely). Thanks to this 16th title on the circuit, the Russian will move up to 6th place in the world on Monday, while the Canadian will be able to console himself with a return to the Top 20.
He never panicked. Despite a false start and a double break quickly conceded (4-1), Andrey Rublev finally saw his undermining work pay off on Sunday, even though he would probably have completely missed out on this final in the same circumstances a few years ago . With his experience, he managed to control his frustration to find his rhythm on the restart against an opponent who was very lively on his first ball. More efficient from the baseline, he demonstrated this superiority, including physically.
Because if Félix Auger-Aliassime ended up giving up his weapons after a final cruel double fault, it is anything but a coincidence. The Canadian was forced to defend hard from the baseline from the second set, pinned or even pounded on his backhand by the Russian’s uncrossed forehand. He also had a lot of merit in the exercise. Because after giving up his serve and the second set, he could have collapsed at the start of the third act. But he multiplied the saves: two break points saved from the start, two others at 2-1 and another one at 4-3. With his back to the wall, he brought out his best tennis, both on serve (14 aces) and on the forehand and even on the backhand, his weak point.
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