ATP Miami: Hubert Hurkacz makes surprise finals perfect
Hubert Hurkacz (ATP No. 37) has reached his first final in a Masters tournament. In the semi-finals of the Miami Open, he surprisingly beat Andrey Rublev (ATP No. 8) 6: 3, 6: 4.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Apr 03, 2021, 08:19 am
Hubert Hurkacz versus Jannik Sinner: Despite the absence of the "Big 3" - nobody would have expected this final. After youngster Sinner's victory over Roberto Bautista Agut , Hurkacz has now also reached the final of a Masters tournament for the first time and is playing for his biggest title there on Sunday.
Against Rublev, the man from Poland dominated from the start, but he did not use a 5-1 lead to lead the set, Rublev initially fended off five set balls. Even in the second half, he did not give up, despite the match point against himself on his own serve. But Hurkacz fended off three breakballs to equalize and used match point number 3 to win.
"It means a lot to me, especially after I won a title at the beginning of the year ( Delray Brach, editor's note ). After that, I had a few tough matches," said the 24-year-old on his 4-5 record since then.
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Hurkacz praises final opponent Sinner: "A good person"
The amusing thing: With Sinner in the final, Hurkacz had already contested two doubles tournaments in 2021. "Jannik is a great person. He's incredibly calm and relaxed, and he's a good person," he praised the 19-year-old Italian.
Andrey Rublev, on the other hand, is still waiting for his first participation in the finals in a Masters tournament. He ended the 2020 season with strong performances in the 250 and 500 tournaments and started just as well in 2021, with a total of 20 match wins. And was happy about his consistency despite his defeat. "It was a great week. I reached my first semifinals in a Masters, I play consistently and come quite far in all tournaments," said the 23-year-old. "Today wasn't my day. Hurkacz played well and deserved the win. That's all, there's nothing more to say about it."