Throughout his career, Andrey Rublev (6. ATP) has yet to win a single Grand Slam tournament. What's more, the Russian has never played in the semifinals. Rublev has advanced to the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament ten times. He has played the most times in the quarterfinals of the US Open, where he reached in 2017, 2020, 2022 and 2023. Last year, Rublev was eliminated in the quarterfinals by his compatriot, Daniil Medvedev (5. ATP), who won 6:4, 6:3, 6:4.
This year, Rublev won the ATP 1000 tournament in Madrid, when he defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime from Canada (19th ATP) in the final 4:6, 7:5, 7:5. He also reached the final of the tournament in Montreal, but lost 2:6, 4:6 to Australian Alexey Popyrin (28th ATP). “I am speechless. If you knew what I went through in the last nine days, you would not have imagined that I would be able to win the title. I was almost dead every day. I have not slept for the last three or four days. I am still sick and I think that tomorrow I will go back to the hospital for a full examination,” Rublev said after winning the final in Madrid.
Rublev began the US Open Grand Slam with a 6-3, 7-6 (3), 7-5 victory over Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild (68th ATP). In the second round, his opponent was Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech (56th ATP).
“Tournament exchange” at the US Open. 37 strokes in the Rublev-Rinderknech match
The entire match between Rublev and Rinderknech was played at an extraordinary level of intensity. In the first set, the Frenchman won 6:4, which could have heralded a potential surprise. Rublev was then broken twice, and was only able to respond once. In the first game of this set, Rinderknech saved two break points. In the second set, one action absolutely made history. It happened at 4:6, 3:1, 30:40 from the perspective of the Russian tennis player.
Rublow and Rinderknech played an absolutely exceptional rally. For almost a minute, the tennis players bounced the ball on the court. In this rally, we had a total of 37 strokes and Rublow eventually won it, bringing the balance in the game. At the last ball, Rinderknech fell to the ground and needed a few seconds to catch his breath. “37 strokes of exhausting tennis” – writes the official profile of the US Open. The fans gathered on court number 17 went crazy and summed up the entire rally with a standing ovation for both tennis players.
“I was really tired watching this exchange”, “this match was really exciting”, “it was a real test of endurance and skill”, “they don't spare themselves”, “it was the exchange of the tournament” – Internet users wrote on social media.
The entire match lasted over four hours and was played the full distance. After a five-set battle, Rublev won 4:6, 5:7, 6:1, 6:2, 6:2 and advanced to the third round of the US Open Grand Slam. There, his opponent will be the Czech Jiri Lehecka (38th ATP). This match will take place on Friday.