French tennis phenom Ugo Humbert stunned defending champion Daniil Medvedev with a sensational display at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Humbert, renowned for his fast paced style of play, took the match by storm, displaying an ideal balance of confidence and skill to go with it. The win not only highlights Humbert’s outstanding season where he reached his second consecutive final of the year, having lifted the trophy in Marseille last month but also sets up a mouthwatering championship clash with Alexander Bublik.
Humbert showed great technical prowess by pushing Medvedev wide off the court. Humbert’s strategy of using his trademark sliding lefty serve was successful in opening up the court, which allowed him to bag early points. Humbert did lose a break advantage in the second set, but quickly recovered from the setback to seal the win (7-5, 6-3).
23rd ranked Alexander Bublik’s spot in the final came as a result of an unexpected twist against World no.5 Andrey Rublev. With the game evenly poised at one set apiece and Bublik having come from behind twice to lead the closely contested 3rd set 6-5, Rublev in his growing frustration snapped at the line judge for a close call and was issued a second code violation, having already gained one earlier in the match, resulting in his disqualification.
As a result Alexander Bublik moved to the final. In contrast, the other semifinal between Medvedev and Humbert was a gentlemen’s affair. Where the Frenchman dispatched the defending champion in straight sets.
The Frenchman’s path to the final included Gael Monfils (4-6, 6-3, 6-3), Andy Murray (6-2, 6-4), Hubert Hurkacz (3-6, 7-6 (8), 6-3) and now Daniil Medvedev (7-5, 6-3).
Reflecting on his performance after the game, Humbert said. “I played the perfect match today, One of my best matches. It is never easy to play against Daniil but I was ready to play some rallies. With my title at the beginning of the year, I had a lot of confidence and tried to bring everything to court and I played a great level. I am super-happy with my level. He added. “I have a good statistic in finals (5-0). Hopefully I can win it, and keep this statistic.”
Humbert is 12-3 for the season after winning in Marseille, his home city. On Saturday, he takes on Alexander Bublik for his second ATP 500 title and his sixth tour-level prize. He won his first ATP 500 championship back in 2021. Ugo Humbert is presently ranked No. 15 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, having previously never lost a tour-level final.
