Hubert Hurkacz is the champion of the tournament in Shanghai! Thriller in the match against the Russian

Hubert Hurkacz had a long and successful path to the final of the ATP 1000 tournament in Shanghai. From the beginning of the competition, the Wroclaw native defeated Thanasi Kokkinakis, Yu Hsiou Hsuego, Zhizhen Zhang and Fabian Marozsan, respectively, and in the semi-finals he defeated Sebastian Korda 6:3, 6:4. So it was time for the grand final with Andrei Rublev, who defeated Grigor Dimitrov 7:6(7), 6:3 in the semi-finals.

Hubert Hurkacz’s play made Andrei Rublev frustrated

Hubert Hurkacz used his greatest advantage, which is his strong serve, from the very beginning of the match. In the first game, Rublev was only able to successfully return once. Andrei Rublev gave the Pole no chance with his pass and quickly equalized the match. The Wrocław player did not allow the Russian to break and took the lead again, and when his opponent passed, he made a nice fight, winning two exchanges, but it was not enough. The scoreboard showed 2:2, and the Pole made his first bagel, winning his serve to zero.

This strongly motivated our representative, who led to break points three times in the next game and broke the Russian, who only exploded in frustration.

What was even worse for him was the fact that the next pass belonged to the White and Reds, and as usual, he took advantage of it and went down for a break with a smile on his face. The eighth set was in Rublev’s favor. He allowed the 26-year-old to make just one winning rally. Hubert Hurkacz closed the matter with a service ace on his serve and took the lead in the match.

Andrei Rublev did not give up his weapons

The second set started with a perfect game by Rublev. The Russian returned to the game clearly motivated, because when the Pole passed, he achieved balance and then a break point and successfully used it, breaking his opponent for the first time. After 13 minutes of the second part of the game, the scoreboard showed 3-0 for the seventh racket of the ATP ranking. Hubert Hurkacz won the first serve only in the fourth game. The Pole was close to gaining the balance, but Rublev served too hard to return effectively.

When the score was 4:1, the Wrocław player won his service game to zero, and although it seemed that he was getting into higher gear, the Russian quickly dispelled his illusions of a break and, after an exciting action, the score was 5:2. Although the 26-year-old from Poland won his game perfectly again, he was unable to break his opponent in the next one and thus Andrei Rublev equalized the match.

Amazing end to the match!

It was therefore necessary to play the third set, in which Hubert Hurkacz played better. He won his serve, although the Russian was better in two exchanges. In the third game, the Pole reached 40:40, but it was not enough to upset the well-disposed Rublev. What’s more, the 25-year-old from Moscow was able to lead to a break point on the serve of the 17th racket of the ATP ranking, but the Wrocław player quickly got out of trouble and we had 2:1. And so the exchange of blows continued, and the Russian again hit the Pole with a bagel. Game number five brought us long rallies and good serves from the 26-year-old, which turned out to be crucial to tip the scales in his favor.

Rublev was adamant and Hurkacz was unable to return effectively with his strong forehands and backhands, so again the 25-year-old won to zero. The game lasted 1.35 h and Hurkacz was leading 4:3 in the third set. It didn’t take long as the Russian equalized again and then had to serve under pressure because a lost game would mean a lost final. On his serve, Hurkacz made it 40:40 and then got the match ball! Rublev was booed for his behavior towards the photographer, for which he received a warning. The Russian defended the match, then took the advantage and successfully defeated the Pole, equalizing the score 5:5.

However, the Wrocław resident did not give up. His serves were still effective and he won his serve again and put pressure on his opponent again. Despite this, the 25-year-old did not let himself be confused. He presented another bagel and led to a tie-break. Unfortunately, Rublev’s advantage from the first ball was visible and he quickly scored three points. Hurkacz responded with two service aces. The game ended in the Pole’s favor 10–8 and he became the champion of the ATP 1000 tournament in Shanghai!