Andrey Rublev ended the inspiring run of qualifier Jiri Vesely by 6-3, 6-4 in the final of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Saturday to win his second title in two weeks.
The doubles final saw Tim Puetz and Michael Venus needing almost two hours to overcome Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic 6-3, 6-7, 16-14. It was the second Dubai title for Venus after he won in 2020 with John Peers, and the second straight year that Mektic and Pavic finished as runners-up.
At 123, Vesely is the lowest-ranked player ever to reach the final of the tournament in its 30-year history, and he was just one win away from becoming only the third qualifier to claim an ATP 500 Series event title since they began in 2009.
But second-seeded Rublev, who also won last week in Marseille, looked more focused and for the first time in four matches didn't drop his serve in the early minutes of the match. In fact, he lost just two points on his serve in the opening set, and a break for 3-1 was enough to give him the set.
He came under more pressure in the second set, but not until after he successfully challenged an out call to break for 1-0. He then held two break points for a 4-1 lead, but Vesely dug deep and not only fought off that threat but then broke in the next game to level at 3-3.
The fightback was short-lived, however, as Vesely's seventh double-fault gifted Rublev a break for 4-3 and he went on to claim the title with his second match point.
( With inputs from ANI )
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