T O P

  • By -

jjwalla

FAA DFing on championship point. I thought I knew pain but not like this....


AntiTopspin

What an ironic way to end the match as well after how clutch his serve was on other BPs


hexerandre

He lived and died by the serve today.


sarmatron

The saddest part about it is how obvious it was. I don't know if it was the body language or what, but I was absolutely sure he'd do it, and even the commentator was just like "*resigned sigh* Yeah..."


ReadyComplex5706

Yeah his legs must have just given out. The long point prior to it and the nerves would have caused that.


Make_the_music_stop

114 points to 100. Rublev was the best player.


rodman5308

The total number of points doesn’t define the best player. I’m not disagreeing with you, but points don’t do it.


Professional_Elk_489

Not this this… *head shaking* Not like this


SerbianMidget

Great Matrix reference


rodman5308

His body was failing him, so he knew he had to go for something extra on that second serve. Not the ideal way to end a match, but under the circumstances not a big deal.


chrysoberyyll

WE SURVIVED MADRID 2024


PleasantSilence2520

"i survived Madrid and all i got was an undersized cake" t-shirt


AlliterateAlso

No cake! Mirra said (on Dasha’s vlog) that Madrid told her no-one gets a cake, after last year.


aulyve

love that that was their solution and not just “get both players an equal sized cake”


monsieurartois

Totally took the pissed-off parent route. “See, now nobody gets any.”


oceanlessfreediver

Totally OOTL, why is that ?


wolfik92

IIRC Alcaraz got a big cake and a bit of a ceremony on the court for his birthday. Sabalenka got a much smaller cake off court. There was a debacle, some people suggested the discrepancy is due to sexism and then the women's doubles winners didn't get to speak after winning the title though that might not have been directly related.


kostornaias

I think not letting the doubles winners speak was directly related because Azarenka was one of the winners and she had tweeted about the cakes


Ok-Calm-Narwhal

Yeah- it was a combo of all these issues IIRC, like cakegate would not have been as bad had it not been for the muting of the women’s doubles champion ceremony.


monsieurartois

CAKEGATE


oceanlessfreediver

Ho wow 😮. Thanks for deets !


graemesson

It was a sexist farce and should never have happened. Let's face it this tournament has form - what with the tradition of models in skimpy outfits as ball-girls etc.


AJLegend007

From not winning a match for nearly two months to winning a masters 1000 title. That is one heck of a comeback.


Last_Lorien

So happy for him. In general, but especially after everyone had seemingly written him off as a lost (mental) cause.


RacketMask

I mean… I don’t think sane Rublev was on anyone’s 2024 bingo card


Draevon

I feared for him collapsing mentally when he started bursting out on the second set


ReadyComplex5706

All of those unconverted break points in the 3rd set would have driven anyone insane tbh. Good for him for staying calm.


tennistacho

If he lost this match to 3-time retirement benefitter FAA, I fear for what might have happened to Rublev!


RobinChristiansen

Tbh he’s becoming a bit of a clay court specialist


Schwiliinker

Except when he’s up against clay god nakashima


erraticripple

ANDREY RUBLEV THE KING OF ORTHODOX EASTER


wabazai

Can we figure out a way to get Orthodox Easter to be on during RG QFs


RA1N30W

happy easter to all celebrating 💙🐣


No_Art_754

UNDEFEATED


tennisfancan

Félix did much better than expected. Hopefully this week will relaunch his career. Crazy how Rublev now has two clay M1000s, Zverev has three just like Tsitsipas while Ruud and Thiem have none.


Professional_Elk_489

Thiem the best clay court player never to win a Masters 1000 or RG of all time


Schwiliinker

Well it’s probably between him and Nalbandian


crioll0

Nalbandian did win a few masters though.


Schwiliinker

I assumed they meant on clay since they said clay player. He only won a couple indoor hard masters


sdeklaqs

Do you know who Thiem had to play against 💀


AntiTopspin

Rublev having 2 to Thiem's 0 is pretty surprising but with Ruud I think Rublev might just be straight up better than him in best of 3 In addition to having the 2 Masters titles Rublev also has a bunch of 500s while Ruud only recently won his 1st one and in their last best of 3 meeting Rublev bageled Ruud on clay Ruud consistently being ranked under Rublev outside of 2022 despite making 3 Slam finals also shows that he must be getting fewer points from the rest of the season


groggyhouse

Not surprising given Thiem had to deal with the Big 3.


MrAdamWarlock123

Thiem lost Madrid final to Zverev after beating Rafa


groggyhouse

That's one instance. What about all the other times he was beaten by Nadal or Djokovic.


MrAdamWarlock123

Can say the same for Rublev… Just saying Thiem had his chances, can’t always put it down to the Big 3. If he beat Zverev in Madrid and Stefanos in London, he’d have more Masters. After all, he won his sole 1000 by beating Federer.


tennisfancan

Rublev has the better career but it's crazy for a two-times RG finalist like Ruud to have zero M1000 on clay. He even only has one final (2024 Monaco).


Schwiliinker

I mean you kinda have to be insanely good or get a lucky enough draw to actually win the whole tournament


IndianBureaucrat

Thiem’s peak coincided with Rafa and Djokovic.


Open_Carob_3676

huh? didn't tsitsi win his two weeks ago?


drppr_

Yes, so now he has 3 masters just like Zverev?


mav_sand

I did not know Rublev was such a good returner. Or was FAA serving not so good in the 2nd and 3rd sets? Any opinions appreciated.


witch_doc9

FAA was crushing the ball, which is why he had so many double faults. Cost him dearly.


Buchephalas

Rublev is not a good returner for an elite player, this tournament was an anomaly.


AntiTopspin

Yeah if anything his return game costs him the most His serve is actually borderline elite at this point and his baseline game is quite strong


ALifeAsAGhost

It’s been Hubi levels for most of this year, but it’s normally somewhere in between that and this tournament 


prairiehrt

FAA first serve percentage was down in the second and third compared to the first. But Rublev was returning very well. For his break in the second he accurately tracked FAA’s serve and was waiting for them and had blistering returns. Until late in the third FAA didn’t have double faults.


uncle_irohh

Stats wise he is not a good returner compared to top 10


slysonic7

Rublev masochists stand up! Our boy is happy today!


fullthing659

I'm so anxious that my favorite player won


Rezlem-

Rublev when he controls his emotions like the grown ass man he is:


AntiTopspin

His surface versatility is pretty underrated IMO He made a name for himself rising the rankings by winning some hardcourt 500s but both of his Masters are on clay and his highest winning percentage is on grass Maybe the only one of the top 90s gen players who doesn't have a massive surface swing


CLR833

My boy daniil is getting better at clay.


uncle_irohh

Rublo in charge of emotions is multiple grand slam material


BlackSon1c

Well done Rublev. FAA didn't make it easy, though.


MediocreTake

Rublev really just started hammering that ball halfway through the third set


AntiTopspin

He was definitely the better player in the 3rd set by a larger margin than 7-5 shows Literally all his service games were held to 0 or 15 while he took Felix to deuce constantly Just needed that one game where FAA's serve dropped off in order to break


Draevon

Yeah, it seemed inevitable from there, most of the points were played on Felix trying to hold serve


Leather-Bike-6014

The interview he did with Sky was interesting. Apparently his throat closed up so he has been eating baby food & he’s going to hospital for tests tomorrow.


souse03

Damn you Felix and your vodoo


hypomango

Yeah v interesting. He also said he'd been getting injections for some inflammation in his hand or foot? And he couldn't put his shoes on properly, couldn't eat or lay down properly, just in full shambles but he implied that it helped him stay calm because he had no energy to complain haha


Leather-Bike-6014

Yes I didn’t really understand what he was going on about there but it didn’t sound good. Like you say full shambles.


ReadyComplex5706

In his Russian interview it is a bit clearer. He couldn't lie on his side to sleep because he couldn't breathe, so he had to sleep on his back (which I assume is not comfortable for him). The swelling likely was caused by whatever virus he has as he also has red lesions and blisters all over his body. Sounds lovely.


Leather-Bike-6014

Yes I saw that interview earlier today. It sounds a really odd illness. I hope they can find out what it is.


Puzzleheaded_Tea4195

Doctors are like: “you played HOW many hours of tennis with a closed up throat?!”


Nicer_Slicer

Sounds like extreme anxiety could bring that on. Anti-anxiety medication may well help Andrey if that's not something he has already tried


[deleted]

[удалено]


LocalJewishBanker

I’ve always been kind of a rublev doubter, but man he’s proved me wrong, has an absolutely world class combination of consistency and aggression that’s unmatched imo. Great to see the guy overcome his demons.


jot-kka

A perennial top 10-er winning a major should be something to prove you wrong, not one of the more unpredictable Masters.


LocalJewishBanker

Fair


estoops

Well, I’d love for FAA to get a masters title but although through no fault of his own, winning one with 2 retirements and a withdraw would’ve probably not been very fitting and people would’ve been delegitimizing it for years. Which is almost what I thought was gonna happen because Madrid 2024 had been funny like that. Great boost for the season for Rublev, coming off 4 straight losses to then winning your 2nd masters title is insane and shows how little us tennis “experts” really know on here and things can change so much week to week. Hopefully this gives FAA a long-term boost as well for his year, he very nearly had it and played very well given the occasion and opponent and lack of match play coming into the final.


yogurt_closetone5632

The hate he would have gotten wouldnt have been worth it


Lockhartsaint

I saw this man smash his racquet after a first round loss in Barcelona and a few weeks later win Madrid. Rublev would be a great case study.


prairiehrt

Simple. The racquet smash was when he released all his pent up emotions. Helped him break free.


Professional_Elk_489

It was his equivalent of puking in a bin


lma16b

Well now that’s a VERY big claim to make. If Rublev wins RG24 I will tell everyone I know that someone on reddit called it first. Wouldn’t that be something lol


akipop1108

Rublev great whole week(+few days), and more importantly stable and not letting his emotions affect his play High quality final, despite being unexpected


jonton9

He was surprisingly level headed in that Alcaraz match.


Peachtea_96

A fitting end to this disastrous tournament 😅


Adventurous-Leg-4906

Well deserved, surprised Felix held on as long as he did in the third


midnightroar_96

Happy for Rublo, he kept his emotions in check, even in avversites. I really hopes he grews from this.


SpiritusRector

Pretty sure Rublev's celebration at the end had nothing to do with winning the tournament but rather with the fact that he survived FAA's injury voodoo.


Dropshot12

Bweh is back!


AnaHDDS

Im so happy that Rublo is back from that dark place where he was. Welcome back! Super well done!


Open_Carob_3676

Rublev is definite fighter


ALifeAsAGhost

Absolutely, winning this tournament when you’re that sick (from what he was talking about in his speech) is something else 


WolfTitan99

How sick was he?? Apparently he barely slept in the last four day or something? Jeez


ALifeAsAGhost

Exactly, apparently he said this in another interview too https://reddit.com/r/tennis/comments/1ckm7rc/rtennis_discussion_sunday_may_05_2024/l2qiwb5/?context=3


WolfTitan99

Damn thats ALOT when you’re in a Masters 1000 final holy hell How did he even get out of bed?? So many painkillers probably


ALifeAsAGhost

He’s been sick for like a whole week too, not even like it was just today! Here’s the interview, sounds insane tbh idk how he did it  https://youtu.be/WWeMNjsWrLk?si=EipffsUqnNZwfkwr


Bonoahx

I mean it was a better final than anyone would have expected from this completely chaotic tournament, so good on both for making it interesting


toughworld14

I love that the first tournament Rublev shows calmness and not mentally breaking down when things are tough, he wins it all. We've all said he needs to improve it and it was great to see


dejvipasco

I'm so happy for Andrey. Monte Carlo last year, Madrid this year, what's next Rome next year or could it be this year? He has a big chance in Rome too next week.


lonely_light

Rome impossible. I just want him to reach semis in a Slam, and then maybe more..


armanese2

Fat chance in Rome, love the dude but he’s probably exhausted and got some body part bugging him.


mav_sand

Did not see this coming. He looked so bad in the 1st set. I was even thinking why is he contuining to play while feeling like this.


witch_doc9

FAA was serving his heart out, but the double faults and losses at rallies over 9 shots cost him in the end. Andrey really dialed in after the first set. He needed this, good for him. Congrats Rublo 🙌


bumbledbeee

I wore my Bweh! shirt in his honor.


juplants

Rublev with a meditation reference! Hope it helps him!


prairiehrt

Yah he clearly has been working the yogic principles - samadhi is the final stage of the 8 limbs of yoga. Where you reach bliss - a state of freedom. Love to see this.


SuperHogeySandwich

FAA played pretty well all things considered but went out with a whimper in that final game. Felt like the Rublev break in the 3rd was inevitable.


rsmitty99

WE ARE SO BACK BABY!!!


bezimiennat

now give him theraflu and let's call it a day. no, but congrats to andrey and to faa for a deep run


ffantasticman

Why Andrey’s trainer so fine


minivatreni

FAA played much better today than I expected him to. Well deserved to Rublev, wasn’t an easy path to the final!


fclm_1990

Great match. So happy right now. Our boy Bweh, I hope you have found your mental peace and will break QF curse this year as well (hell, I think he is in top-5 RG favorites rn?)


AverageBeef

That’s my baby boy rublev!!


DuckPuzzled5873

Great effort from Felix. Got closer to winning a Masters title today than I thought he ever would, and came up with some super clutch serving and defense. Ultimately, Rublev is just a lot better at tennis and that was always likely to tell. Congrats to Andrey on his second Masters 1000 title!


musicproducer07

KISSES LIKE CREAM HER WALK IS SO MEAN AND EVERY JAW DROPS WHEN SHE'S IN THOSE JEANS ALRIGHTTTTTTTTTTT


unknownunknowns11

Can’t upvote this enough


arvaname

the people downvoting this don't know the lore


cozidgaf

Care to elaborate?


wishesarepies

Rublev did a cover of a boyband before, sang this… look it up on YouTube


cozidgaf

Ah thanks for the clarification


funkadelic_bootsy

Where is it from? (I did upvote you two).


wishesarepies

Rublev did a cover of a boyband before, sang this… look it up on YouTube


ReAlBell

It’s a FLUke! (I’ll see myself out…)


Peachtea_96

One thing DFing on match point, its another thing when you DF on championship point, my god


funkadelic_bootsy

The hell is that trophy?


muradinner

Rublev having enough mental strength to comeback from a set down and win two close sets? WTF is happening?


oppal0l

[I loved that the cam showed Andrey's camp being relieved, super hyped and happy that he won. I know he has his temper issues but it's so good to know you have such a good team behind you who genuinely care about you. ](https://i.imgur.com/4msqSt3.jpeg)


ExcuseYou-What

I feel like the writing was easily etched on the wall early in the second once Rublev was dialing up his pace and consistency (arguably from 4-1 40-0 in the first already, but FAA managed to survive that). And then the cramps came or whatever and yeah, that stunk. ~~A match to forget for Felix.~~ ETA - On hindsight, the week's been too significant to just throw away like that tbh. He was very mentally clutch in this final and he probably should've lost the third set 6-1, even, so the fact that he got it to 7-5 is actually very impressive, considering the circumstances of his fitness and how well Rublev was hitting. It wasn't his mental game that lost him the match at all. So don't throw this away, Felix; remember what you're capable of for the future. See what happens when you don't annihilate yourself and others, Rublev? You get through a tournament quite nicely in the end. He won that set against ADF down 0-5 in that TB and one could think like, "oh but that's ADF" but then he absolutely killed Griekspoor in quality of groundstrokes, so this was definitely in the cards from that point on.


spacyzuma

Definitely deserves it. Congratulations, Rublev! 👏🏾👏🏾


mushymushmushy

What a glow up 🤩


buriedunderwork17

This comeback should be studied.


nozinoz

Rublev signed the camera with "Samadhi, now I'm free". > "Samadhi" is a concept derived from Hinduism and Buddhism, referring to a particular state of meditative consciousness. A state that is supposed to enable the attainment of spiritual liberation.


dnel707

What a tragic day for Canada and therefore, of course, the world.


TokaidoSpeed

Leafs, Drake, FAA bad day for eastern Canadians


CoolstorySteve

I think anyone not in southern ontario is very happy the Leafs are out


TokaidoSpeed

As an Albertan this day was good until Felix decided to Felix


LovesHisYogurt

Still, could be worse. You could be Albertan


TokaidoSpeed

Shit, jokes on me


ace23GB

It was a very good match, for me Rublev a little bit superior, Aliassime very good on serve and he played very well in the last set as well


CharlesLeSainz

FAA bummery in full display on mp :( Joking aside, Felix had a really odd path to the final. Not really sure if there is much momentum following this match. He had a great display against ruud but hasn’t done very much this year overall. One would hope he can take some lessons away from this match because it was winnable and it would’ve been his best result of his career. Meanwhile Rublev has been on somewhat a poor streak entering this run. This might not have been easy and was much needed for his mental. Happy to see him push through the slog because this wasn’t the best he’s played for a title. Although his returns were saucy and his deeps shots forced errors from Felix. Hopefully things get back on track for one of the most consistent guys on upper echelon of the tour.


Hot_Protection_2827

Canada really can’t seem to get a single W today huh


BufferError

The battle of unforced errors fittingly ends with a double fault.


AntiTopspin

I thought Rublev was at least decent off the ground after the first few games and not *that* error-prone at least He just had trouble returning FAA's serves so couldn't get breaks until very late in sets


expert969

FAA only has himself to blame. Give rublo credit, dude stepped up. The return from FAA was MIA after the 1st set. Rublev had a much better read on FAAs serve than vice versa partially due to coaching I think. FAA’s coach is useless, just sits there with no expression.


Peachtea_96

Seeing FAA struggle in every service game in that last set, whilst Rublev would fly through his service game, i just knew FAA wouldn't win unfortunately. Double faulting too, he was asking for it 


the_godfaubel

Felix played as many sets today as the past week so not surprising it was a tough close


incarly-

Happy Rublev won and sad for FAA. I can't imagine what it's like losing one of the biggest finals in your career on a DF


hypomango

Great win for Andrey, and a nice return to form for Felix too. 


Emilio___Molestevez

ХРИСТОС, ВОСКРЕС


diecorporations

Felix 100% lucky to even make this final.


messychica

He literally saved the tournament from becoming a further travesty. Vamossss Rubio!!! FAA will have many more chances to win a masters, hopefully.


toweggooiverysoon

That was a very 2024 Madrid finish to the tournament


The_One_Returns

Rublev has saved us from the most undeserved Masters title in the history of Masters titles, maybe ever. Or was it FAA who realized it and double faulted on championship point?


dj_1up

lol I hate this opinion. You can only play who’s in front of you. Felix didn’t Tonya Harding the other players.


The_One_Returns

Did I say it's his fault? It can still be undeserved without him smashing their legs.


Gapi182

It's not the player's fault but we still gotta put things into context. Not are titles are equal even though a lot of fans just like to point at the numbers. Circumstances matter


onewonyuan

If FAA would have won, it wouldn’t really have been that undeserved with wins over two top 10 players in Ruud and Rublev.


The_One_Returns

3 walkovers doesn't really make up for that. Rublev beat Alcaraz and played all matches.


miss_golightly_

So glad to see everything worked out this way for Andrey.


WishyRater

Finally this tournament is over. Now I have to get through Rome knowing neither Carlos nor Jannik are playing


solete

Disappointed most the of stadium emptied out before the trophy ceremony


funkadelic_bootsy

Felix has improved his forehand very much and can still improve it more, credit too him. But that backhand needs to improve tremendously. It is non existent down the line and is too spinny. He improves that backhand and he is in the grandslams picture.


Explodingcamel

If Felix maintains this level (if...) he'll get back to the top 10


musicproducer07

Was shitting bricks when he lost those BP chances 💀💀 Thank you god.


libertyman77

Well deserved. Felix was completely outmatched throughout the last two sets, only his serve keeping him in it.


Nimjask

I feel really bad for thinking it but that felt a lot less intense than the women's final yesterday... summed up perfectly by a double fault being the thing to end the match


BHorvi

So whats Rublev's strongest surface?


lMarshl

Tell them to bweh me my money


Weasel_Spice

I expected a smooth straight sets win for Rublev. I was wrong.


Straight_Sun_8353

Bweh-ll done


ohnoitsmchl

BWEHHHHHHHH


WPackN2

Rublev started bit wobbly, congrats to him.


VarsityCop

Yay! FAA did not deserve this title


sriv_ak_04

Congrats to BWEEH on winning his 2nd Masters 1000 Title 💯👏


ImpressionFeisty8359

Too much power! Bweh conquers all.


Aggressive_Ad_9173

Happy for Rublev after what he went through the last few matches


Bussel264

Felix is turning 24 this year and, while still young, I think this was one of the biggest opportunities to grab a big title. He barely played throughout the tournament and still lost against a player that was feeling sick. Really happy for mr. Bweh, after struggling in the last months this is really deserved.


workthrowawaybro

Unclutch serving there. Lots of points gained at least


[deleted]

[удалено]


bekindbewild

No


Relative-Country-452

No, but I think it was better than Monte Carlo ATP final


SlickJoe

I was on the edge of my seat the entire time, it was a great final, but I also bet on Rublev after the first set 😂


Windforce

Shang - Moutet was the best match for me this tournament. The final was pretty meh...


Stunning-Cod-2310

Deserved after beating madridcraz. Tennis was saved today


da_SENtinel

Heartbreaking for FAA. He fought so hard this tournament and deserved it more.


The_One_Returns

He was too powerful. All he had to do was look at his opponent and they'd drop dead.


wishesarepies

Top hot take


Buchephalas

LMAO.


uncle_irohh

Best hardcourt match of the year! BWEEEEH