Rublev through to sixth Masters 1000 final in Montreal
Andrey Rublev won against Matteo Arnaldi 6-4, 6-2 on Sunday night and will play the winner of the match between Australian Alexei Popyrin and American Sebastian Korda in the final
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Russian Andrey Rublev, the No 5 seed, reached the final of the Montreal Masters by beating Italian Matteo Arnaldi 6-4, 6-2 at Stade IGA on Sunday night.
He becomes the first player to make two ATP Masters 1000 finals in 2024, having won the Monte-Carlo Masters in April.
The world No 8 will play the winner of the match between Australian Alexei Popyrin and American Sebastian Korda in the final tomorrow.
Rublev untroubled despite rain delay
Not even the return of the Montreal rain could prevent Rublev from rolling past Arnaldi in efficient fashion on Sunday.
The Russian gained a break in the third game of the match, and did not look back, closing out the set before the rain set in.
When the pair returned, Rublev quickly got about his work, gaining breaks in the fifth and seventh games of the second set as his forehand began to do real damage, particularly on Arnaldi’s second serve.
“That was the idea,” said Rublev after the match, when asked whether skipping the Olympics helped him hit the ground running better on the North American hardcourt swing.
“If I’m in the final, it means we did really well,” he continued.
“It was worth it for sure I’m happy to be in my first Canadian final.”
Rublev will enter Monday’s final as a favourite, regardless of who he meets. But the Russian is not counting his chickens before they hatch, calling the match “50/50” ahead of the Montreal Masters final.
“Both players are tough,” he explained. “I lost to Alexei here last time. With Korda, we also have super tough matches, 50-50. We’ll see.
“I want them to play as long as possible, and then we’ll see tomorrow.”
Rublev won against Argentinian Tomas Martin Etcheverry (7-6 (3), 6-2), American qualifier Brandon Nakashima (6-2, 6-2) and Italian Jannik Sinner, the top seed (6-3, 1-6, 6-2) earlier in the tournament.
In the previous rounds of the Rogers Cup, Arnaldi, ranked No 46, won against American qualifier Mackenzie McDonald (4-6, 6-4, 6-4), Russian Karen Khachanov, the No 16 seed (7-5, 7-5), Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (4-6, 7-6 (5), 3-0 ret.) and Japanese Kei Nishikori (6-4, 7-5).
Montreal Masters 1000, other semi-final result (Stade IGA, hard, USD 6.795.555):
- Alexei Popyrin vs. Sebastian Korda
