LAST UPDATE | 23 Jan 2023
NEVER-SAY-DIE fifth seed Andrey Rublev saved two match points to topple Danish teen Holger Rune in a tense five-set clash on Monday, booking his place in the Australian Open quarter-finals.
In a battle of two former junior world number ones, the Russian broke when Rune was serving for the match, then saved two match points before winning 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (11/9) in sapping heat on Rod Laver Arena.
He will face nine-time champion Novak Djokovic, who demolished Alex de Minaur for the loss of just five games to sweep into a 13th Australian Open quarter-final and send an ominous warning Monday, showing few signs of his troublesome hamstring.
The Serbian brushed past the Australian 22nd seed 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena to move a step closer to a 10th title at Melbourne Park, and 22 major crown.
With his left thigh again heavily strapped, the 35-year-old was a man on a mission, expending as little energy as possible in a 2hrs 6mins romp to inch within sight of Rafael Nadal’s slam record. The victory put the 25-year-old into the Melbourne quarter-finals for a second time and for a seventh time at Grand Slams.
“I really wanted to win in straight sets,” said Djokovic, who will return to world number one for the first time since June if he wins the tournament.
“Obviously you never know what’s going to happen on the court … I thought first four or five games were quite close, but after one break in the first set I felt more loose and free to go through the ball and be more aggressive.
“I played the best match of this year so far.”
Victory put him into a 13th Melbourne quarter-final to move fourth on the all-time list behind Roger Federer, Nadal and John Newcombe.
Djokovic has not lost in Melbourne since 2018 – he did not play in 2022 – and has now won 25 consecutive matches at the Australian Open.
Next to stand in Djokovic’s way will be world number six Rublev, who, despite winning 13 ATP titles, has never been further than the quarter-finals.
“It’s not like a rollercoaster, it’s like they put a gun to your head. A rollercoaster is easier,” said the exhausted Russian after the 3hrs 37mins epic.
“I think I was never able to win matches like this and this was the first time ever that I won something like this to be in the quarter-final.
“I was 5-2 down in the fifth, at 6-5 two match points and then 7-3 (behind) on a super tiebreak. I have no words, I’m shaking.”
With both players less-than-clinical on serve, Rublev broke the Dane with a forehand winner to take a 4-2 grip in the first set.
But Rune’s returns helped create chances and he broke straight back when Rublev played into the net from the baseline.
A Rune double-fault immediately handed the advantage back to his opponent and this time Rublev made no mistakes in serving out the set in 37 minutes.
Undaunted, Rune clung on in a see-sawing 12-minute opening game in set two and turned the tables to break Rublev for a 3-1 lead, which he never relinquished.
With the sun blazing down, Rublev pounced in the sixth game of the next set, opening up three break point opportunities and he made the most of them.
Down two sets to one, Rune called a trainer for what appeared to be a blood pressure test, but unperturbed got back to work and broke for 4-2 and took it to a fifth.
In a battle of attrition, Rune ground down Rublev to move to 5-2 in the decider, but he failed to serve out for the match.
Rublev then saved two match points to take it to the 10-point tiebreaker, where he bounced back from 7-3 down for a gutsy win.
Also into the quarter-finals after another gruelling clash in the heat is Ben Shelton, the unseeded 20-year-old American who is on his first trip outside the United States.
His dream run at the Australian Open gathered pace with a 6-7 (5/7), 6-2, 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (7/4), 6-2 victory over friend and fellow American JJ Wolf.
Shelton is only the fourth man in the past 20 years to reach the Melbourne quarter-finals on debut.
“I really focused in the fifth set, just being energetic, trusting my fitness and just hustling, being courageous and I thought I did a really good job of competing at the highest level in the fifth set,” said the 89th-ranked American.
Shelton will face another compatriot in the last-eight, as Tommy Paul defeated 24th seed Roberto Bautista Agut on Monday to reach his first Grand Slam quarter-final.
The world number 35 outclassed an opponent ranked 10 places higher 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 on Margaret Court Arena in 3hrs 19mins.
With Sebastian Korda also through, the United States has the most men in the Melbourne Park final eight since 2000 when Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras and Chris Woodruff all got that far.
“That was a really physical tough match,” said Paul, who has one career title, on hard courts in Stockholm in 2021.
Australian Open quarter-finals line-up (x denotes seed):
Men’s singles
Karen Khachanov (RUS x18) v Sebastian Korda (USA x29)
Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE x3) v Jiri Lehecka (CZE)
Andrey Rublev (RUS x5) v Novak Djokovic (SRB x4)
Ben Shelton (USA) v Tommy Paul (USA)
– © AFP 2023, updated at 11.08 with details of late matches
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