Andrey Rublev Returned to the finals by defeating Taylor Fritz | newshux

 

Andrey Rublev Back to the finals by defeating Taylor Fritz

Defeated in the ultimate match two years ago, Rublev, the tournament's fifth seed, will be looking for a 13th career  title and first at a Masters 1000.

In Sunday's final, he will face the winner of the match between sixth-seeded Dane Holger Rune and seventh-seeded Italian Jannik Sinner, played later on Saturday.

Sinner, 21, is making his third straight Masters 1000 semi-final.

On cloudy skies, Rublev tied the game one set all on his fourth set point when eighth-seeded Fritz committed his fifth double fault of the clash.

Fritz scored a break in service to give himself a 2-1 lead in the deciding set but fell to a 15-40 deficit in the next game.

Fritz emerged victorious from a 40-shot rally to save a first break point, but Rublev let out a mighty scream after placing a parallel backhand winner. The Russian then won his serve and took a 3-2 lead, just as the rain started to fall with more force.

The chief referee initially wanted the duel to continue but the two players proved recalcitrant. Play was halted around 4 p.m. local time, before resuming at 5:40 p.m. under clearing skies.

In windy conditions, Rublev immediately broke Fritz's serve before winning his own to give himself a 5-2 lead.