Ruud into last four as Rublev misses out
Casper Ruud moved into the semi-finals of the ATP Finals in Turin after he defeated Andrey Rublev 6-4 5-7 6-2 to end the world No.9’s hopes of going any further in the end of year tournament, and also suffing out Carlos Alcaraz's challenge.
Norwegian Ruud will face world No.1 Jannik Sinner in the last four on Sunday (AEDT), while Alexander Zverev takes on Taylor Fritz in the other semi-final after he beat Alcaraz earlier in John Newcombe Group.
The Spaniard needed Rublev to win in straight sets to stand any chance of making the last four, but that slim hope was put to bed when the opening set went Ruud's way.
He hit 34 winners past Rublev and ended the Russian's run in one hour, 45-minutes victory.
Ruud fell to Novak Djokovic in the title match at the ATP Finals in 2022 having reached the semi-finals on his debut at the 2021 edition, but will have to be at his very best to see off Sinner if he's to surpass his best result in the year-end competition.
