Casper Ruud missed the opening game of the deciding set at the National Bank Open on Saturday. Hubert Hurkacz took advantage – sealing an important break when his return hit the net and trickled across the net – before rolling to victory.
Hurkacz secured a place in the final with a 5:7, 6:3, 6:2 victory in the IGA Stadium. Next he plays against the winner of the evening’s semi-final between Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta and Britain’s Daniel Evans.
The two-meter-tall Hurkacz, an eighth-seeded Pole, was looking to set the tone in the third set after being level in the match. However, Ruud took a 40-0 lead before errors crept into the Norwegian’s game.
A flubbed overhead smash helped Hurkacz deuce. At the breakpoint, the happy result at the net gave him a lead he wouldn’t give up.
“It was a lucky shot at an important moment,” said Hurkacz. “Sometimes it happens. But I tried to be aggressive at that point, so I was glad it paid off.”
“Obviously I don’t mind hitting that line, but it’s probably better to pick a winner. That’s fine,” he added with a smile.
Hurkacz held an 18-8 advantage at Assen and completed the win in two hours and two minutes.
“I think I found a good rhythm and made the right decisions,” he said.
Hurkacz flashed his big serve – he had five aces in the opening game alone – but also left Ruud in the dark throughout the game. His serve and volley play worked well and he occasionally used an effective floating drop from backcourt.
He frequently came to the net to apply pressure, which paid off with an early break. Hurkacz then held at love for a quick 3-0 lead.
The almost sold-out crowd, eager to see a competitive match between the two seeded players left in the draw, did their best to cheer on Ruud. The Norwegian responded with four straight points to get on the board and followed that up with a break of his own.
He added another break at 5-5 – sealing the point with a crisp forehand winner – and winning the opener in 42 minutes.
“I didn’t expect to be in the 7-5, 1-0 position when I was 3-0 down in the first set,” said Ruud. “But he[made]some sloppy mistakes, then he kind of erased those and played some nice winners and nice games.”
Hurkacz, who needed three sets in each of his singles wins, would go the distance again on a warm, sunny afternoon.
He started dictating play more often in the third set and picking up more winners. A sizzling two-handed cross-court backhand sealed another break for a 3-0 lead and he was on course for a second career appearance in a Masters 1000 final.
Hurkacz defeated Italy’s Jannik Sinner in last year’s final in Miami.
Ruud, who defeated Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime in the quarterfinals, defeated Hurkacz in their only previous meeting in the fourth round at Roland Garros earlier this year.
That evening’s semi-final between world No. 23 Carreno Busta and 32nd Evans was their first career meeting. Neither player has appeared in a Masters 1000 final.
The final of the $6.57 million ATP Tour event was scheduled for Sunday.
The last unseeded player to win this tournament was Argentine Guillermo Canas in Toronto 2002. Reilly Opelka was unseeded when he reached the final last year but lost to top seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev.
In doubles, third-placed duo Neal Skupski from Great Britain and Wesley Koolhof from the Netherlands defeated German duo Kevin Krawietz and Andrea Mies 3-6, 6-2, 10-8.
Hurkacz and Jan Zielinski of Poland were scheduled to face Evans and Australia’s John Peers in the late doubles semifinals.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on August 13, 2022.