Rublev Into Marseille SFs, Bonzi’s Dream Run Continues

Andrey Rublev pulled off another final-set recovery in Marseille to see off Lucas Pouille and reach the semi-finals of the Open 13 Provence on Friday.

Having recovered from a break down in the third set against Richard Gasquet in the second round on Wednesday, Rublev repeated the trick in the quarter-finals to break French hearts again as he withstood an inspired performance from wild card Pouille and come through 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 in one hour and 41 minutes.

The Russian was pleased to come through another bruising encounter in Marseille. “It’s tough to play against such great players like Richard or Lucas,” said Rublev after the match. “Especially when they play at home, it’s even tougher. That’s why it’s not easy to beat them and why we played three sets, but I’m happy that I won another match and I’m in the semi-finals.”

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The Russian looked in control early on as he took the opening set, Pouille appearing to be feeling the after-effects of his marathon second-round victory over Radu Albot on Thursday night.

The former Top 10 Frenchman, who has struggled with injuries in recent years, was seeking his first tour-level semi-final since 2019. He produced an excellent second set to level the match as he broke the World No. 7 twice while resisting significant pressure on his own serve.

Pouille broke for a 2-0 lead in the deciding set as the crowd grew excited at the prospect of an upset, but the Russian found an extra gear from that point. The Russian ultimately converted four of 11 break point opportunities in the match as he powered to his second ATP Tour semi-final of the season and extended his ATP Head2Head lead over Pouille to 3-0.

“Lucas won so many titles, he beat top players,” said Rublev. “Especially indoors, with his serve, it’s really tough to play against him when he serves and has a huge forehand. He broke me in the second set and I went a bit down mentally, and if I wanted to win I needed to raise my level. In the third set I started to get back mentally and raised my level and I think that was the key.”

Rublev’s next opponent will be ninth seed Benjamin Bonzi, after the Frenchman upset World No. 15 Aslan Karatsev 6-1, 6-3 to reach his first ATP Tour semi-final earlier on Friday.

After capturing six ATP Challenger Tour titles in 2021 and adding a seventh to his career total in Cherbourg just two weeks ago, Bonzi gave a further signal that his transition to the top level is on track with an accomplished performance as his Russian opponent struggled to find any kind of consistency.

In the first ATP Head2Head meeting between the pair, the Frenchman was quick out the blocks, breaking Karatsev twice and sealing the first set in style with an ace out wide.

Bonzi’s serving remained strong throughout. The World No. 69 lost just three points behind his first delivery in the match and, although Sydney champion Karatsev did find a better level as the match wore on, it proved too little, too late as the Frenchman sealed victory in one hour, 17 minutes.

The win was Bonzi’s first over a Top 20 player and he is yet to drop a set in Marseille going into Saturday’s semi-final with Rublev.