Rublev Completes First ATP 21-or-under Semis Line-up Since 1995
Zeeshan Mehtab Published August 05, 2018 | 01:21 AM
Washington, Aug 4 (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 4th Aug, 2018 ) :Russia's Andrey Rublev completed the first all-21-or-under ATP semi-finals line-up since 1995 on Saturday, downing American Denis Kudla 6-1, 6-4 to advance at the Washington Open.
Rublev, 20, will face 19-year-old Australian Alex De Minaur later for a berth in Sunday's final. The other semi-final matches Greek 19-year-old Stefanos Tsitsipas and 21-year-old German world number three Alexander Zverev, the defending champion.
It was 23 years ago at Buenos Aires the last time an ATP final four was completely a 21-and-under affair and it's a first in the Washington event's half-century history.
Rublev, ranked 46th, was a shock US Open quarter-finalist last year and only in July returned from a three-month layoff due to a lower back stress fracture.
"I'm really happy," Rublev said. "An injury takes time. You can't do anything. It's really tough. But as soon as I started practicing I tried to get as fast as I can." Rublev, who won his only ATP title last year at Umag and made his second career final in January at Doha, needed only 74 minutes to dispatch 85th-ranked local hero Kudla in a match rained out Friday.
De Minaur advanced by walkover when three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray of Britain withdrew Friday after his third grueling three-set victory in four days.
Murray was in only his third event back after an 11-month spell out of action due to a right hip injury.
Zverev seeks his ninth career ATP title and third of the year after Munich and Madrid. He also was runner-up at Miami and Rome.
Zverev could join a back-to-back Washington men's champions list that includes Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro (2008-09) and Americans Andre Agassi (1998-99 and 1990-91) and Michael Chang (1996-97).
Tsitsipas, ranked a career-high 32nd, reached his first career ATP final in April at Barcelona, becoming the first Greek ATP finalist in 45 years. Last month at Wimbledon, he became the first Greek in the last 16 at any Open Era Grand Slam.
In the companion WTA event, two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia advanced by defeating Kazakh eighth seed Yulia Putintseva 6-2, 6-2 in a quarter-final rained out Friday.
World number 128 Kuznetsova, the 2004 US Open and 2009 French Open champion as well as a 2014 Washington winner, booked a semi-final against Germany's 91st-ranked Andrea Petkovic.
In the other women's semi-final, Croatian seventh seed Donna Vekic -- who eliminated Poland's Magda Linette 6-1, 7-6 (7/0) -- will meet China's 85th-ranked Zheng Saisai, who beat US qualifier Allie Kiick 6-3, 6-1.
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