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E-mail Xinhua, May 6, 2024
Andrey Rublev won a tense Madrid Open final 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 against Felix Auger-Aliassime on Sunday evening.
Rublev, struggled with a virus in the opening games, was below his best in the first set, which his unseeded rival claimed 6-4, but that was the sign for the seventh seed to take control of the match.
Auger-Aliassime has struggled for form in recent months, and the only break points he managed to force were in the first set.
As the game progressed, Rublev looked to be increasingly in control, as he held his serve with relative ease, but despite having numerous games where he held the advantage of Auger-Aliassime's serve, he was unable to make it count.
With 11 games in the second set, Rublev had only been able to take advantage of two break points from 10 from his rival, who always seemed able to find an ace when it was most needed to cling onto his serve.
Rublev broke his rival in the 12th game of the second set to level the match and take it to a deciding set, where he always looked the most likely to win.
Auger-Aliassime looked to be struggling physically, asking for a massage early in the third set and then getting a rub on his legs in every break to try and stop from cramping up.
Once again it wasn't until the 12th game of the third set that Rublev finally got his breakthrough at the right moment when Auger-Aliassime double faulted when 30-40 down at the Championship point.
