2 Responses to montreal24popyrin_rublev_

1. Voo de Mar says:

   August 14, 2024 at 1:36 pm

   Points won by each set: | 35-23, 37-31 |
   Points won directly behind the serve:
   29 % Popyrin – 19 of 64
   19 % Rublev – 12 of 62

   It’s been a long time since a player with so little experience of playing in latter stages of big events, won a Masters 1K event; at the Canadian Open it hasn’t occurred since Chris Woodruff in 1997. Like Woodruff, Popyrin [62] claimed the title being a point away from elimination, and defeated several seeded players. Tennis-wise it’s not a shocker to me that Popyrin is a new name on the list of players who have won this prestigious title; already a few years ago I was wondering “how it’s possible that a player with his skills occupies the space between No. 50 and 100?”. In Canada finally everything clicked for him, but the circumstances were also quite specific. The event began just after the Olympics, therefore the singles medallists (Djokovic, Alcaraz & Musetti) withdrew, meanwhile Sinner and Hurkacz came back after injuries being a bit rusty, and other players who played a few matches in Paris, they didn’t have enough time to switch from clay-courts to hard-courts adapting to a new time-zone, and were eliminated early in Canada.
   The final, which was played on Monday night (it’d been planned due to the Olympics), turned into a one-sided affair. Popyrin had no fear facing the more accomplished opponent, as he defeated him earlier this year at Monte Carlo (6-4, 6-4). The 25-year-old Australian of the Russian origin was hitting the ball off his forehand side with a lot of power and variation while the Russian [8] was struggling a lot with his 1st serve (just 44%). Popyrin led 3:1* in the 2nd set, Rublev levelled, only to be broken again at 3-all. Serving for the title, Popyrin was tense, but a bunch of good serves on deuce-court helped him to get another match points, and at the third time of asking he forced Rublev’s error, then celebrated the success of life on his back. “It means the world, for all the hard work I’ve put in over the years, all the sacrifices I have made. I would say it’s one of the best matches I’ve played in my life. I think it’s not a level that I haven’t seen myself produce in practise or an occasional match here and there […]” said Popyrin, the most unexpected Masters 1K champion in the 21st Century thus far. Admittedly Borna Coric triumphed in Cincinnati ’22 being ranked 152, but the Croat was coming back after an injury as a former No. 12, and a title of this magnitude was expected from him many years before.

   Popyrin’s route to his 3rd title:
   1 Tomas Machac 6-3, 6-4
   2 Ben Shelton 6-4, 7-6(4)
   3 Grigor Dimitrov 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3 – 3 m.p.
   Q Hubert Hurkacz 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-5
   S Sebastian Korda 7-6(0), 6-3
   W Andrey Rublev 6-2, 6-4

   Popyrin saved match points at *5:6 (two unreturned serves & Dimi’s backhand error); he also saved a triple mini-match point at 3:4 in the 3rd set against Hurkacz, in the 2nd set of this match he trailed *1:3 and was two points away from defeat at 5-all in the tie-break… due to bad weather Popyrin played quarterfinal and semifinal the same day (Sunday)

   Serve & volley: Popyrin 0, Rublev 0

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2. Voo de Mar says:

   August 14, 2024 at 8:35 pm

   Popyrin jumped from no. 62 to 23 which guarantees him to be seeded in a Slam (US Open ’24) for the first time in his career; two days after the Montreal triumph he lost 5-7, 3-6 to Monfils in Cincinnati

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