Big-serving Hubert Hurkacz to meet Andrey Rublev in Shanghai Masters tennis final

SHANGHAI – Andrey Rublev beat Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (9-7), 6-3 in a gripping Shanghai Masters semi-final on Saturday and will play big-serving Pole Hubert Hurkacz for the title.

The Russian is yet to drop a set in Shanghai as he closes on his second Masters 1000 crown of the year, having triumphed at Monte Carlo in April.

Said the world No. 7: “It’s not easy when you win matches against friends, because you feel both sides. You feel sad but, at the same time, you want to win. It’s a mix of feelings.”

The 25-year-old composed himself to get out of a hole at 0-40 in the first set to eventually hold serve for 3-3 in a game lasting 10 minutes.

Rublev then pounced at the first glimpse of an opportunity to break Dimitrov for 6-5, only to be broken back immediately by the 18th-seeded Bulgarian as he served for the set.

The duo exchanged more thunderous groundstrokes in the tiebreak and both squandered a set point before Rublev sealed the set in 76 minutes when Dimitrov fired a forehand wide.

The 32-year-old Dimitrov is playing some of the best tennis of his career and broke at the start of the second set, with Rublev reacting by whacking the net three times with his racket.

But Rublev, who has won 14 titles, got the break back for 2-2 and then repeated the trick to race to victory as Dimitrov quickly ran out of steam.

In the earlier semi-final, big-serving Hubert Hurkacz registered a ruthless 6-3, 6-4 win over 26th seed Sebastian Korda of the United States.

The 16th-seeded Pole sent down 14 aces as he barrelled his way into a meeting with fifth seed Rublev.

Said Rublev: “I’m thinking only to rest and try to recover for tomorrow, because Hubi is so tough to play. He’s one of the players that you don’t want to face because he can beat everyone.

“With his style of the game, the way he serves, the way he hits the ball. We’ll see, I just want to take my time to recover and to be as (ready) as possible for tomorrow.”

Korda, who was contesting his first Masters semi-final, was always up against it in the face of a barrage from Hurkacz.

The 26-year-old Pole did not face a single break point on his powerful serve and wrapped up the last-four encounter on his second match point after 77 minutes.

“Seb is a really tough opponent and great returner, so you need to play well against him, otherwise he ends up taking advantage of your shots,” said Hurkacz, who has six titles already, including winning the Miami Masters in 2021.

“I’m just really happy with my performance today,” added the Pole, who won 85 per cent of points (40 of 47) behind his first serve on Saturday. “I was serving well, playing some good groundstrokes and definitely putting pressure on Sebi from the ground.”

Hurkacz, who has the highest number of aces in the tournament with 77, said his serve is “a big thing for me”.

“It’s really important to set up the point with the serve and, if I am serving well, that puts pressure on the opponent and they know they need to serve well,” he said.

“I’m working on being difficult to play against. It’s the same with every opponent. They try to come out with their best foot forward that day and they’re trying to (implement) their tactics or plan against you. You’ve just got to stay mentally strong and really battle.”

Meanwhile, China’s Zheng Qinwen reached the final of a WTA tournament on home soil for the first time, making the Zhengzhou Open showpiece after easing past 31st-ranked Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-3 in 75 minutes on Saturday.

It is world No. 24 Zheng’s third career final after the Pan Pacific Open in September 2022 and the Palermo Ladies Open in July. She lost to Liudmila Samsonova in the former before beating the home favourite Paolini on clay in the Italian city.

The 21-year-old, who reached a first Grand Slam quarter-final at the US Open in September, will face world No. 18 Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic in the final on Sunday. The former French Open champion beat Russia’s Daria Kasatkina 6-3, 6-0 in the other semi-final. AFP