(Paris) Andrey Rublev, 6e world player, missed his third round at Roland-Garros on Friday, clearly beaten 7-6 (8/6), 6-2, 6-4 by the Italian Matteo Arnaldi (35e), author of a very solid performance.
The 26-year-old Russian, accustomed to the second weeks at Porte d’Auteuil, where he reached the quarter-finals twice, will especially regret his lack of realism during the first round, during which he broke the first, before then wasting a set point in the deciding game.
Whereupon, the recent winner of the Masters 1000 in Madrid left his match, frustrated and accumulating gross errors, not without showing his irritation on numerous occasions.
Opposite, Arnaldi, who is participating in his second Roland-Garros at the age of 23, remained focused until the end, to complete the affair in 2 hours 33 minutes.
“Winning the first round obviously gave me confidence in this match where I was not the favorite. He certainly did not play his best tennis, but my tactical plan also worked very well,” said the Italian, rewarded by his aggressiveness on the course like his 64 winning shots.
He will face in 8are in the final is the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (9e) or the Chinese Zhizhen Zhang (44e).