STEFANOS Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev will face off in the 2021 Monte Carlo Masters final, defeating a couple of tournament giant-killers in Daniel Evans and Casper Ruud to secure their sports. The fourth seed Tsitsipas was relatively fresh after only playing a set before a retirement in the quarter final, while Rublev knocked off tournament favourite Rafael Nadal in a three-set thriller.

In the semis, Tsitsipas dismissed Evans – who he himself knocked Novak Djokovic in a stunning upset earlier in the tournament – 6-2 6-1 in a one-sided result. The match lasted 69 minutes before the Greek fourth seed was able to advance through to the decider. He only dropped 11 points on serve and saved the only break point chance from Evans, while the Brit managed just 23 of 54 on serve, and struggled throughout the match.

“I am indeed pleased with the performance,” Tsitsipas said post-match. “I found ways to play at my best. “It was really difficult to maintain my level of consistency and I am really happy I managed to deal with all the different moments during the match. “I had a lot of opportunities to hit the forehand, and think how I wanted to construct the point.”

Tsitsipas is yet to drop a set in Monte Carlo, and was far too good for Evans whom he beat for the fourth time. He has a 3-3 record against Rublev and will be looking to bounce back against the Russian after losing to him at the World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam last month.

“I’m feeling good. I’m feeling energised. I still have plenty of gas and energy left in me,” Tsitsipas said. “I was able to have all of my matches done in two sets, so that is a big plus. “I am happy to be able to play that way, just take it match by match, approach each individual match with the same intensity and energy… I’m really focused for tomorrow.”

The other semi-final was a lot close, as Rublev forced his way to a 6-4 7-5 victory over Ruud. The match lasted an hour and 20 minutes, as Rublev’s consistency off his first serve points – winning 76 per cent success – helped him grab the win. Both players struggled to hold serve when opening the door for their opponent with a total of eight break point opportunities all converted, but five went in the favour of the Russian.

“Casper is a really amazing player, especially on clay,” Rublev said post-match. “Since the beginning he put a really high intensity [on the court] and was really tough. I knew that I needed to raise my level if I wanted to fight against him, because if I [did] not raise the level I [would] lose for sure.

“He started [by going] up with the break and I felt like I needed to raise my level, raise my speed [and] hit harder. Otherwise, I had no chance. I started to do it and then I started to play better and he started to miss a bit more. I think that was the key.”

Rublev said he was looking forward to taking on Tsitsipas for the second time, and both players will be eyeing off their maiden ATP Masters 1000 title. The Russian has had great success at ATP 500 events with four titles, whilst Tsitsipas is yet to win a title past an ATP 250 or the ATP Finals which he won in 2019.

“It is an amazing feeling. It is my first [ATP Masters 1000] final, so I am really happy,” Rublev said post-match. “We will see what is going to happen [in the final]. I will try to do my best.”

MONTE CARLO MASTERS SEMI-FINALS RESULTS:

[4] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) defeated Daniel Evans (GBR) 6-2 6-1
[6] Andrey Rublev (RUS) defeated Casper Ruud (NOR) 6-3 7-5

Picture credit: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images