Clinical Rublev eases past Lehecka to reach fourth round at US Open
The Russian came through 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 against Jiri Lehecka at Flushing Meadows and will face ninth-seeded Grigor Dimitrov in the last 16
Andrey Rublev, US Open, 2024 © Chryslene Caillaud / Panoramic
Andrey Rublev put in a measured and professional performance against Jiri Lehecka, beating the young Czech 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 to move into the last 16 at the US Open.
Both players were coming into this third-round encounter off the back of gruelling, five-set epics in the previous round.
In the searing, humid heat that enveloped New York City two days ago, both Rublev and Lehecka fought back from a two-set deficit to clinch victory in five. The central question today was which of the two men would recover more efficiently from their exertions in the second round.
The key factor was that Lehecka was only playing in his second tournament back after three months out of action due to a stress fracture in his vertebra, sustained at the Madrid Open back in May.
The Czech made an excellent comeback, defeating Daniil Medvedev in Cincinnati last week, before coming through two challenging rounds of Grand Slam tennis in Flushing Meadows.
Unfortunately for Lehecka, however, he was up against a seasoned athlete who has honed himself into prime shape over the course of an uninterrupted eight months on tour. Perhaps rather predictably, it was the Russian who was the fresher of the two, ultimately overawing the world No 38 with his relentless power off both wings, with much more in the tank to utilise for scampering defence.
Not that Lehecka – who is quickly establishing himself as a supreme young talent – went down without a fight. The Czech played admirably, only losing serve in the eighth game of the opening set as his opponent then served out a 6-3 win.
The pair exchanged breaks midway through the second stanza before Rublev again struck late on, breaking in the eleventh game and serving out the set at 7-5.
In contrast to the first two sets, Rublev then broke in the opening game of the third as he looked to wrap up a straightforward win. But a potential fightback appeared to be on the cards when Lehecka broke back for 3-3, only for Rublev to strike again in the ninth game, serving out the win with a fine ace on his second match point.
dimitrov awaits rublev after clinical win over jiri lehecka
“First of all, Jiri is an unbelievable player,” Rublev said in his on-court interview following his win.
“We’ve played many times. Last time, he beat me really easily. I knew that I really needed to perform today, I really needed to play well, because it’s going to be really tough.
“In the end, I was really happy to be able to win in three sets, especially after the second round where I struggled a lot and it was five sets.
“At this stage, this is really important.”
A run to the third round of the US Open backs up a highly commendable return to action for Lehecka, who was in blistering form in Madrid – taking down a certain Rafael Nadal on an emotional night in the Spanish capital – before injury cruelly took a damaging chunk out of his season.
But, remarkably, he has more or less picked up where he left off, and still has a couple of months of the season left to fine-tune his form before the off-season.
For Rublev, the fourth round beckons and so does an eighth meeting with Grigor Dimitrov, whom the Russian has beaten four times out of their seven past meetings.
Should he get through that challenge, then he will be rewarded with a chance to reach the semi-finals of a Grand Slam for the first time after ten previous quarter-final appearances.
First things first, though. Rest, recovery and then preparing for an eye-catching match-up against Bulgaria’s finest in the last 16.
