HALLE, Germany (AP) — Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik upset Andrey Rublev 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in the final of the Halle Open on Sunday ahead of Wimbledon.
Bublik, who had won eight of 27 matches all year before this week, played a risky style that paid off with 42 winners — third-seeded Rublev had 23 — along with 21 aces.
“It really means the world to me,” Bublik said. “I’ve been struggling for half a year ... I don’t take it for granted. It was hard work."
It's the second title of Bublik's career after he won in Montpellier last year with the player improving to a 2-6 record in tour-level finals, and his first win on grass after twice being runner-up in Newport. He rises to a career-high 26th in the rankings after starting the week 48th.
Rublev drops to 13-8 in finals. The Russian is now a two-time Halle runner-up after losing to Ugo Humbert in the 2021 final.
The seventh-ranked Rublev is set to return to Wimbledon next month after missing last year's edition of the grass-court Grand Slam event when Russian and Belarusian players were barred following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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