Sharing memories of his exciting victory over Roger Federer in 2019, Andrey Rublev said he was surprised after the last point. In addition, the Russian mentioned how natural and sensible Roger was in defeat, which made a great impression on the young man.
In 2019, Roger failed to reach the Cincinnati quarterfinals for the first time since 2008, losing to qualifying Andrey Rublev 6-3, 6-4 in 61 minutes! Standing as one of the next stars, Rublev suffered a nasty back injury in the spring of 2018, stayed away from the court for a couple of months and lost momentum and qualifying positions and had to start again in 2019.
The young Russian advanced to the first quarter-finals of the Masters 1000 in Cincinnati that year, beating the Swiss in almost every department to control the score and achieve the best victory of his career that gave him a huge boost.
Losing 15 points in ten service games, Rublev defended himself from two of three break points and stole 40% of the return points for three breaks on his account that took him to the top in a quick fashion.
Shooting 17 winners and six unforced errors, Andrey mastered his shots very well to outrun Roger despite 20 winners and 19 errors from a multiple champion. Landing one bold punch after another, Rublev took over in shorter rallies of up to four shots, beating Roger 43-34, which is never easy.
The Russian also held a 16-10 lead in the longest exchanges, closing the deal in style and advancing to the last eight. Andrey broke at 15 in the second game after Federer’s loose backhand, but gave up serve in the next when his forehand landed long.
Determined to do his best, Rublev fired a winning forehand shot to secure a break and open a 3-1 lead.
Andrey Rublev spoke about victory over Roger Federer
This time, he made no mistakes, landed a winning serve to advance 5-2 and closed the opener with three winners in game nine 6-3 after 28 minutes.
Federer never found his desired rhythm in return games taking just four points from Andrey’s games in set number two to walk away from break opportunities and play under pressure.
The Swiss took Game 5 home on a winning serve before Andrey broke it at 3-3 thanks to a deep return, forging the lead and taking a huge step towards the finish line.
Rublev confirmed the break with his serve and served for the win at 5-4. Showing no signs of nerves, Andrey held out at 15 after forcing Roger’s mistake to emerge as a winner and finish one of his best performances on the Tour.
“I was in a state of shock when I beat Roger, but also because I put myself in his place and imagined the harshness of that loss for him. The players at the top have to endure so much pressure because they cannot lose and diminish themselves in the media. .
They have to reach at least the final in all tournaments. Roger has been doing it for many years. It shocked me even more than my victory; his behavior, his attitude and the way he accepted it. I felt like I had beaten a true legend, “Andrey Rublev said.
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