Rublev wins second title in two weeks

Andrey Rublev won last week’s Qatar ExxonMobil Open without dropping a set

Andrey Rublev extended his unbeaten run to 12 matches as he beat Lloyd Harris 6-3, 6-0 to win the inaugural Adelaide International men’s singles title.

In doing so he came the first man in 16 years to secure back-to-back titles in the first two weeks of the season, having won last week’s Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha without dropping a set.

The Russian, ranked 18 in the world, saved all four break points on his way towards seeing off Harris in 56 minutes as he followed in the footsteps of Dominik Hrbaty, who won titles in Adelaide and Auckland ahead of the Australian Open back in 2004.

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“I was not thinking about [the record] but it’s an amazing feeling,” said Rublev. “If you talk about results, of course this is the best I have ever done.”

Rublev broke for the first time in the sixth game, before coming back from 0-40 in the following game to hold serve and then claim the set two games later.

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He broke Harris’ serve once again in the first game of the second set, producing another two service breaks on route to securing the win.

“This is what we are working for, to be more consistent, to be more mentally strong,” added Rublev. “This is what we’re working for. And I’m happy that these two weeks went this way. I got two titles. It’s amazing. I never had this before.”

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Ugo Humbert won his maiden ATP Tour title with a 7-6 (2) 3-6 7-6 (5) win over fifth seed Benoit Paire in a thrilling all-French final at the Auckland Classic.

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Humbert raced to a 3-0 lead in the first set of the Australian Open warm-up event before Paire staged a comeback to force a tie-breaker.

Rising 21-year-old Humbert regained the upper hand to take a 1-0 lead but looked nervy in the second set, allowing Paire to draw level.

Paire looked jaded in the decider, having played five three-setters throughout the week, but refused to throw in the towel when Humbert served for the championship at 5-3.

Paire fired three consecutive backhand winners and went on to force another tie-break before Humbert finally sealed victory to ensure he will jump inside the top 45 for the first time on Monday.