Andrey Rublev wins Russian battle while Jannik Sinner takes out Hubert Hurkacz
Andrey Rublev advanced in the Monte Carlo Masters at the expense of compatriot Karen Khachanov.
The opening set of the match came down to which player would blink first in tricky conditions.
Rublev said that it was all downhill after he took the opening set, which he described as ‘all mental’.
“We know each other too well. The first set was only mental. We didn’t show some tennis skills,” Rublev said.
“But it was tough to show skills because the wind was really hard and the court was slippery and it was tough to do something. The first set was super mental. As soon as I was able to win a set, I started to feel more free and I felt Karen felt more down, so that was the difference.”
Rublev advances to his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final since his run to the Madrid last eight in May 2022.
He will next meet Jan-Lennard Struff after the 32-year-old German upset Casper Ruud.
It was Struff’s first top-ten win since his he overcame Daniil Medvedev in Halle in 2021.
Jannik Sinner also overcame both the blustery conditions and a strong challenge from Hubert Hurkacz to seal a third-round victory.
“It was a very tough match,” said Sinner after improving to 23-5 for the year. “Playing against him, I knew already from the beginning that it was very tough to get into the rhythm. I think he served incredibly in the first one-and-a-half sets, and when I broke him the first time the momentum changed a little bit.
“He also had match point. These kinds of matches can go both ways, I’m happy that it went my way, and happy that I can play at least one more match [here].”
Sinner was delighted to receive enthusiastic support from the crowd, with a strong contingent of Italian fans in attendance.
“I can feel the energy of the crowd,” said Sinner when asked about the support he received from the crowd.
“There are a lot of Italians here and they helped me a lot, especially when I’m in a very tough situation on the court. This helps me, and I try to get a lot of energy from that. Let’s see what’s coming from the next round.”
The Italian fans suffered disappointment when Matteo Berrettini didn’t make it onto the court to face Holger Rune with the sixth seed advancing.
Later they would have a lot to cheer as Lorenzo Mussetti split two sets with world No 1 Novak Djokovic before rain forced the suspension of play on Thursday.
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