Rublev Qualifies For Next Gen ATP Finals

Andrey Rublev joined Alexander Zverev on Monday as the only two players who have qualified for the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals, to be held 7-11 November in Milan.

“I’m really happy and I’m really excited to play in Milan,” said Rublev. “I did hard work this year and I’ve had some great results. So I’m really excited to play Milan.”

The 19-year-old Moscow native has enjoyed a breakout season this year on the ATP World Tour. He exploded onto the scene in July, when, as a lucky loser, he won five consecutive matches to win his maiden ATP World Tour title at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag.

#NextGenATP Rublev continued to excel during his first full season on the ATP World Tour. Last month, the right-hander became the youngest US Open quarter-finalist since Andy Roddick in 2001. Rublev upset Grigor Dimitrov and David Goffin before falling to eventual champion Rafael Nadal.

Read More: What’s Beyond Rublev’s Meteoric Rise?

The 6’2″ Russian reached another quarter-final earlier this month at the China Open in Beijing. He beat tour veterans Jack Sock and Tomas Berdych before losing to fellow #NextGenATP Zverev. Rublev now sits at a career-high No. 35 in the Emirates ATP Rankings.

Only two weeks remain in the Emirates ATP Race To Milan, which ends on 30 October, and will determine seven of the eight players who compete at the Next Gen ATP Finals. The eighth spot will be given to the winner of an Italian 21-and-under tournament. Rublev’s countryman Karen Khachanov is in third place in the Race with 1,045 points. Canadian Denis Shapovalov sits in fourth with 926 points.