Andrey Rublev qualifies for the ATP Finals for the fourth consecutive year
Andrey Rublev has become the fifth player to qualify for the 2023 ATP Finals in Turin. This will be the Russian's fourth consecutive appearance at the year-end championships.
Rublev achieved the milestone after winning his second-round match at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna, Austria, against Matteo Arnaldi on October 26. Rublev defeated the Italian in straight sets 7-5, 6-3.
As the No. 3 seed, Rublev began his campaign in Vienna with a win against Alexei Popyrin on October 24. The 26-year-old will next face Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinal of the ATP 500 tournament, which he won in 2020.
With his run in Vienna, Rublev has confirmed his spot at the ATP Finals, to be played from November 12 to 19, with 4320 points. He will join defending champion Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, and Jannik Sinner in Turin. Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev, and Holger Rune currently occupy the remaining three spots.
As the No. 6 seed at the 2022 ATP Finals, Rublev put up his best performance at the tournament by reaching the semifinal. In the group stages, he defeated Tsitsipas and Medvedev, only losing to Djokovic. In the semifinal, he was bested by No. 3 seed Casper Ruud.
The Russian debuted at the Finals in 2020, where he bowed out in the group stage. In 2021, another group stage exited followed. He won one match in both editions.
A look into Andrey Rublev's route to the 2023 ATP Finals
Andrey Rublev began his year at the twin tournaments in Adelaide, where he failed to win any matches. He entered the Australian Open as the No. 5 seed and ousted high-profile players like Dominic Thiem, Dan Evans, and Holger Rune before losing in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Djokovic.
The 26-year-old's next noteworthy performance came at the ATP 500 Dubai Tennis Championships, where he lost in the final to compatriot Daniil Medvedev. Fourth-round appearances at ATP 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami followed. After disappointment in the Sunshine double, Rublev clinched the biggest title of his career at the ATP 1000 Monte-Carlo Masters, where he came back from a set down to whisk the trophy away from Rune.
At the French Open, Rublev's campaign ended prematurely at the hands of Lorenzo Sonego in the third round. The Russian's Grand Slam quarterfinal curse continued at the Wimbledon Championships and the US Open, as he once again failed to make it past the final 8 stages at a Major.
Andrey Rublev's second title on the 2023 ATP Tour came on the clay court of the ATP 250 Swedish Open in Bastad. He also reached his second ATP 1000-level final of the year at the Shanghai Masters, where he ultimately came up short against Hubert Hurkacz in a close-three set affair.