Alexei Popyrin on Monday profited from the mental fragility of Andrey Rublev as the Australian won the biggest title of his career at the National Bank Open in Montreal.
World No. 62 Popyrin beat sixth-ranked Rublev 6-2, 6-4 in 90 minutes in the US Open tuneup, denying the Russian a second Masters crown this season after winning at Madrid.
“One of the best matches I’ve played in my life,” Popyrin said. “It’s not the way I played in that final that makes me most proud. It’s more the way I played all week.”
Photo: AFP
Popyrin is the first Australian to win a Masters 1000 title since Lleyton Hewitt at Indian Wells in 2003. The only other Australian to reach a Canadian final was Patrick Rafter in 2001, who lost to Romanian Andrei Pavel.
Popyrin, who turned 25 last week, is the fourth person from his nation to win at this level, following Rafter (1998 Toronto, 1998 Cincinnati), Mark Philippoussis (1999 Indian Wells) and Hewitt (2002 and 2003 Indian Wells).
“This means so much, it means the world,” Popyrin said. “All the hard work we’ve put in over the last couple of years has paid off.”
Photo: Dan Hamilton-USA Today
Popyrin, who beat five top-20 opponents during his run to Canadian glory, said he never felt much pressure.
“I felt pretty calm. I love to play matches like this. There is no point in being nervous or afraid of the opportunity,” he said. “I wanted to impose myself in the first game and I think I managed to do that. It disturbed him a little bit, which was part of the game plan. I kept going in that way.”
Rublev, who has boiled over several times this season on court and confessed to dealing with mental stress, got off to a poor start and took out his frustrations early through screaming, kicking a towel container and generally breaking down in tight moments.
His form in knocking out world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals was barely visible as he ran into an inspired Popyrin.
Yet Rublev said that from a month ago his head is “clear” and his mental attitude is improving.
“A month ago I was [mis]behaving much more. I showed emotions today, but compared to other matches I did a better job,’” said Rublev, who was disqualified from Dubai in February for angrily confronting a linesman.
“I would call this a very positive and very good week. It was a big step forward. I’m proud I was able to play really good mentally all week,” he said.
In the women’s singles, Jessica Pegula defeated Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 in an all-American final to win the National Bank Open in Toronto, becoming the event’s first back-to-back champion since 2000.
Sixth-ranked Pegula captured her sixth career WTA title and second of the year after Berlin in June to become the first consecutive winner in Canada since Martina Hingis in 1999 and 2000.
“Crazy. I can’t believe it. I wanted it so bad,” Pegula said. “Getting emotional thinking about it. I’m so happy to take the title here. It’s awesome. I’m just flooded with emotions.”
“It has been an up-and-down year but these are happy tears. I’m so happy,” she added.
Pegula said she was happy to have won the Canadian crown in both of the event’s alternating home cities, Montreal and Toronto, which is near her own hometown of Buffalo, New York.
Her grandparents, one from Toronto and the other from Montreal, were in the audience.
“One in each city, so that’s one for each of you,” Pegula said.
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