(Halle) Kazakh Alexander Bublik upset Andrey Rublev 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in the Halle Open final on Sunday.
Bublik had 21 aces, 10 more than his rival. He had the advantage 2-1 for breaks and 42-23 for winners.
Bublik deserved a second title after that of Montpellier, last year. His record in the final round is 2-6.
Bublik will reach 26th place in the ATP, a personal high. He started the 48th week.
Rublev is 13-8 in finals. The Russian was also defeated in the final in Halle in 2021, by Ugo Humbert.
Seventh in the world, Rublev is expected to return to Wimbledon next month.
He wasn’t there last year, when Russians and Belarusians were banned following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
