UTS Oslo: Rublo continues dominance over The Rebel

Andrey Rublev, Holger Rune and Alex de Minaur were all winners as UTS Oslo got under way

Andrey Rublev at the UTS 2023 Grand Final (Action Plus/Panoramic)

February 9, 2024

Andrey “Rublo” Rublev got off to a blistering start in the first match of UTS Oslo, winning his ninth consecutive quarter against Benoit Paire, The Rebel.

He continued his crushing dominance over The Rebel with a 20-12, 20-14, 22-16 triumph. Not even Paire’s efforts to distract him on serve could have an effect, with Rublev sending down a blistering ace towards the end of the third quarter.

Rublev adds this victory to his excellent UTS head-to-head against Paire, who he had previously beaten at the 2023 UTS Grand Final in London, and in the Frankfurt Final Four.

Next up, Dominic “Thieminho” Thiem returned to UTS for the first time since 2020, facing Holger Rune, The Viking. The second quarter was particularly notable after a spectacular 36-shot rally – the longest in UTS history – was ended with a brilliant backhand from the Austrian, and he closed the quarter with some fantastic net play to level up.

It wasn’t quite enough, though, in a very tight match which The Viking took in sudden death, three quarters to two – 16-8, 11-14, 13-10, 11-13, 2-1.

And former UTS champion Alex “The Demon” de Minaur continued his perfect record in the format as he beat Gael Monfils, La Monf, 15-12, 17-8, 16-9.

The Australian was the winner in Antwerp during the first incarnation of UTS, and did not lose a quarter during his progress to the lightning bolt trophy.

Although he had noted earlier in the week that there were some changes to the rules since the last time he played in UTS, he certainly didn’t struggle to get to grips with them, putting on a stellar display against La Monf – even wheeling out some dance moves on court.

La Monf, for his part, certainly pushed his opponent – winning four points in a row at the end of the first quarter to ensure The Demon was under pressure to get the job done.