SHANGHAI, CHINA - A head-to-toe Yonex ambassador, Hubert Hurkacz (POL) produced a colossal performance to win the ATP Masters 1000 in Shanghai for his biggest title in more than two years.
In every way, this was tennis on a massive scale, with Hurkacz saving a championship point in the third-set tiebreak against Andrey Rublev to win 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(8) after two hours and nine minutes. It was his second ATP Masters 1000 title, coming after his first in Miami in 2021, which was also on hard courts.
Hurkacz's game is built on the power of his serve and he fired 21 aces and won 81 percent of his first-serve points. Using the all-new PERCEPT, along with his strength of shot, the Pole demonstrated great strength of character, in what he described as an "emotional battle".
With his seventh career title on the ATP Tour, and his second this year, Hurkacz moved to 11th in the live rankings for qualification for the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals in Turin next month, which is reserved for the best eight players in the world. Hurkacz is attempting to qualify for the second time.
"It was such a battle, especially emotionally. It was back and forth and such a tricky match. Andrey was playing some great shots. I was trying to respond. It was one of those matches and I kept believing and I am super happy with how I managed at the end. It is such a big tournament and so much tradition. It is a huge event and I am really happy now,” Hurkacz said.
“Andrey was playing some really good tennis, and I knew I had to produce the shots, so I was just trying to stay out there and compete as hard as I could and to keep positive self-talk and then keep the belief until the end. At the end of the day, it's a final, and you want to just give it all you got out there.”
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Road to the title:
Round of 64: Beat Thanasi Kokkinakis 7-6(5), 6-4
Round of 32: Beat Yu Hsiou Hsu 6-4, 6-4
Round of 16: Beat Zhizhen Zhang 7-6(6), 4-6, 7-6(4)
Quarter-final: Beat Fabian Marozsan 4-6, 6-1, 6-3
Semi-final: Beat Sebastian Korda 6-4, 6-4
Final: Beat Andrey Rublev 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(8)
Hurkacz’s gear:
Racquet: PERCEPT 97
Footwear: ECLIPSION
Apparel: Yonex apparel
