Peroni Nastro Azzuro Refresh: Sinner at the end of his rope

His health, nagging leg pain, exhaustion and Andrey Rublev’s superlative tennis all explain why. At IGA Stadium in Montréal, the World No.1 suffered a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 defeat at the hands of the fifth seed in a match full of ups and downs through which he failed to live up to his reputation.

From the very first point, Sinner struggled to find his bearings. In their game of cat and mouse, his opponent always got the last word.

Just as the second set was getting underway, the skies opened up. After a 25-minute delay, Sinner came out of the gate strong, backing Rublev into a corner with dominant and precise shots.

But the pain and nausea soon caught up with him. The third set was absolute torture for Sinner, who’d reached the end of his rope. He held out until the very last point, but there was no real hope of bouncing back.

He hit 16 unforced errors, far more than usual, and lost to Andrey Rublev for the third time in eight tries.

As for Rublev, he was unstoppable in two of the three sets. He managed to beat Sinner on his groundstrokes and kept his composure even when things weren’t going his way.

Rublev is now set to compete in his very first National Bank Open semifinal.

Arnaldi has the last word

Matteo Arnaldi added Kei Nishikori to his list of victims at the National Bank Open presented by Rogers.

On Saturday night, he fought his way into the semis with a win over the 34-year-old Japanese ace (6-4, 7-5), who was on serve for a tiebreak but made three consecutive errors to give Arnaldi the break and throw in the towel.

With flashes of spectacle, the match ended after exactly two hours of intense combat and often drawn-out backcourt rallies. In this game of patience, the young right-hander from Sanremo got the last word. His more formidable serve earned him five aces (none for Nishikori).

After defeating Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the morning and Nishikori late in the evening, Arnaldi will be back on Centre Court on Sunday at 5 p.m. to face Andrey Rublev (5). He’ll have to dig deep into his reserves, if he has any left, to dispose of this tough and experienced opponent.

Hurkacz fights on

In his two-hour battle against Arthur Rinderknech, Hubert Hurkacz (4) left it all on the court to secure his second three-set win of the day (6-4, 3-6, 6-4).

He earned 3 service breaks (2 for Rinderknech) and made 10 unforced errors (15 for Rinderknech). For a man who underwent knee surgery just last month, Hurkacz seems to be back and better than ever.

Recognition all around

• On Saturday evening, Félix Dolci, Aurélie Tran and William Émard, three Canadian athletes who just returned from Paris, were honoured for their performances at the Olympics.
• It was also Volunteers’ Day at the NBO in recognition of everything the volunteers do, rain or shine, to make the tournament possible.

READ: Bruins fan Korda getting some luck in Montréal

Zverev holds off Rune

Alexander Zverev (2) seemed to be coasting. After breaking Holger Rune and closing out the first set 6-4, he was on course for a decisive victory.

But the resilient Rune wasn’t ready to pack up his racquet bag just yet. The 13th seed fought back and then broke his rival to force a second set tiebreak.

Once again, Zverev got up 6-2, but the Dane bounced back to bring the score to 6-5. In the end, it took six match points for the German to seal the deal (6-3, 7-6(5)) and book his ticket to the quarterfinals after 1:43 of play.

Alexander Zverev was especially brilliant on serve, hitting 8 aces and 2 double faults compared to 2 aces and 8 double faults for Rune.

Dimitrov runs out of steam

Against Alexei Popyrin, veteran Grigor Dimitrov resisted as long as he could but ultimately fell 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-3. For a long time, it looked as if the Bulgarian would claim victory in the second-set tiebreak, but he wasn’t able to make it happen.

Some of the match’s most impressive stats were posted by Popyrin, who withstood 8 of the 9 breaks he handed his opponent. As for Dimitrov, he was broken the only time he ended up in trouble.

Brilliant Rublev

You can never be entirely sure what kind of tennis he’ll serve you, but there’s no denying that Andrey Rublev has been brilliant this week in Montréal. Against qualifier Brandon Nakashima of the US, the World No.5 was nothing short of imperial.

It took him only 63 minutes to send his rival back to the locker room (6-2, 6-2). He gave away zero break points, broke the No.52 six times and scored 59 points (37 for Nakashima)—a level of domination Rublev hadn’t shown in months!

Meanwhile, Matteo Arnaldi took advantage of Alejandro Davidovich Fokina’s withdrawal. After just over two and half hours, the Spaniard threw in the towel at 0-3 in the third set.

Finally, Casper Ruud, who was slated to challenge Sebastian Korda, bowed out due to illness.

Hurkacz, in extremis

After undergoing surgery for the serious knee injury he suffered at Wimbledon on July 9, Hubert Hurkacz (4) made his big comeback on Centre Court at the National Bank Open presented by Rogers on Saturday afternoon.

And his reappearance was a resounding success, since he managed to outmanoeuvre Thanasi Kokkinakis at the outcome of a marathon match (2:28).

Although his knee was perhaps a little stiff and he wasn’t as quick as he was earlier this summer, Hurkacz could still count on his powerful serve and was broken only once (4-6, 6-3, 7-6(6)).

After a lot of back-and-forth in the third-set tiebreak, the Pole was finally rewarded on his third match point.

He dominated with 43 winners (29 for Kokkinakis) and 32/40 net points won to maintain a perfect 4-0 record against the Australian.

“I didn’t even know when I’d be able to play after Wimbledon. It’s a win I really appreciate,” Hurkacz said after the match.

Korda ousts Fritz

The 29-year-old French right-hander Arthur Rinderknech also qualified for the third round this morning. The No.65 caused a bit of a surprise when he elegantly disposed of 22-year-old Flavio Cobolli, who’s been playing impressive tennis of late (6-3, 6-2).

It took Rinderknech 71 minutes to punch his ticket, collecting 5 break points and racking up 57 points (39 for Cobolli). His Italian rival made 18 unforced errors, often at key moments.

Neither Rinderknech nor Hurkacz are done for the day, since they’ll go head-to-head later.

Fans on Court 9 were also in for an interesting surprise when Sebastian Korda (6-4, 7-6(4)) got the better of Taylor Fritz (9).

The only break of the match sealed the first set for Korda, who was especially efficient with 88% net points won and came away with 80 points (74 for Fritz). He posted his first win against his countryman in three tries.

Sunday best

Tennis fans can be certain the best is yet to come. With three of the week’s sessions postponed due to rain, Sunday will feature what could best be described as a double bill.

The tennis balls get rolling at 12:30 with a doubles confrontation, followed by what promises to be an incredible program.

At 2 p.m., fans will be treated to two quarterfinal singles battles. On Centre Court, Sebastian Korda, who toppled Taylor Fritz, will cross swords with Alexander Zverev (2), who’s been playing super solid tennis and is now the logical favourite to win his second title in Montréal.

The winner of that match will be back on Centre Court at 8 p.m. for the evening’s second semifinal.

Also at 2 p.m., Hubert Hurkacz (4) will grapple with Alexei Popyrin, who’s been on fire this week, on Rogers Court.

At 5 p.m., Matteo Arnaldi will have the dubious privilege of taking on Andrey Rublev (5), who got to the final four with a win over World No.1 Jannik Sinner.

In between the singles matches, fans can head over to Rogers Court to catch some doubles.

Featured photo by: Patrice Bériault