Andrey Rublev will have a Masters 1000 title to his name soon, predicts Taylor Fritz
Taylor Fritz's quest for his maiden Masters 1000 title on clay continues, as the American fell in the semifinals of the 2023 Monte-Carlo Masters to Andrey Rublev on Saturday (April 15).
After taking the first set 7-5, Fritz won only four games in the rest of the match as Rublev wrapped things up 5-7, 6-1, 6-3 to reach his second final in Monte-Carlo. In 2021, he fell to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final and will be hoping to come out the victor this time around against either Jannik Sinner or Holger Rune.
Speaking at his press conference after the loss, Fritz touched on Andrey Rublev's chances of winning his maiden Masters 1000 title on Sunday, declaring that he definitely had the caliber to win one. If not this week, Fritz was sure it would happen in the coming days.
"Yeah, of course. I mean, I think there is a lot of people that don't necessarily have one that could have one, and obviously Andrey is definitely the caliber level of player that could definitely have won a Masters 1000, and I'm sure if not this week, at some point, you know, for sure he will," Fritz said.
Hailing the 25-year-old's consistency, Taylor Fritz opined that it was just down to bad luck that the Russian doesn't already have a Masters title to his name and predicted that his level of play was too good for him to end his career without ever winning one.
"You know, it's interesting how it is. He's very consistent. He's made lots of quarters, semis, and I think this is his third final. It's kind of just whoever plays the best on that week. It's just, I guess, you know, he has been unlucky. He hasn't had his week yet. But yeah, obviously he's 100% at the level of a player who you would expect to have one and he'll have one soon," Taylor Fritz said.
In addition to the loss to Tsitsipas in Monte-Carlo a couple of years ago, Andrey Rublev also reached the final of the Cincinnati Masters in 2021, where he fell to Alexander Zverev.
"I'm still obviously improving a lot" - Taylor Fritz on how it feels playing on clay
Taylor Fritz, who has achieved his biggest results on the hardcourt, spoke about his clay prowess at the press conference, opining that it was impossible for one to become a top player without being proficient on all surfaces.
The former World No. 5 also believes that he is improving a lot on clay, adding that he has been trying to make himself a "serious" clay schedule -- unlike most Americans of previous generations.
"I'm still obviously improving a lot, but yeah, it's always been important for me to try to play a serious clay court schedule. Maybe not all the other, I guess, older generation of Americans wouldn't want to play so much on clay, but yeah, like I said, it's important if you want to be top-5, top-10 player to be able to perform on every surface," Taylor Fritz said.