Fernando Vicente: Andrey Rublev on the right track at US Open | ATP Tour

In the coaches’ corner

Vicente: Rublev on the right track at Flushing Meadows

Coach World No. 6 analyzes his 2024 season

September 01, 2024

Andrey Rublev was on the verge of exiting this year’s US Open in the second round. He came back from two sets down against Arthur Rinderknech for a five-set victory in hot and sticky conditions in New York. Surviving this tournament has now led to a great opportunity this weekend as we approach the final Grand Slam leg of the 2024 season.

“It was a turning point because you thought you were out,” explained Fernando Vicente, Rublev’s coach, to ATPtour.com. “When he was watching the game on the field, it was very hot, he was in big trouble. Andrey was very strong physically and was able to pull, and the other games were a little better.

“In Grand Slam tournaments there are always days like that when you have to come back or play long matches. As I say, you are doing well; his body lifted, so did his mind, and he was able to celebrate the victory. I think he looks great.”

After seeing off Rinderknech and beating Jiri Lehecka in the third round, Rublev will face Grigor Dimitrov on Sunday for a place in the quarter-finals. The 26-year-old Rublev holds a slim 4-3 lead in the Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

“He looks good coming into the match against Dimitrov. I think against Lehecka he played a strong match, although he dropped it a few times in the third set and things got difficult, he was able to deal with it very well,” explained Vicente, who plays at number 6 in the PIF ATP Ranking. “I think he is physically fit, he feels confident.

“He had a good American swing, it’s going very well. Obviously you can always do better, but you made it to the finals in Canada, you live in Cincinnati and now you’re playing well here. He’s ready, we’ll see what happens.”

Match of the Day 🎾@AndreyRublev97 🆚 @GrigorDimitrov

2 players who can dominate matches with their forehands ⚠️

A look back at their Shanghai (SF) ’23 meeting shows how often (44 plays to 25) and how effective (24 #WinningPlays to 6) Rublev held his forehand from the middle… pic.twitter.com/zPWbBU8X6A

— Tennis Insights (@tennis_insights) September 1, 2024

With two titles under his belt in 2024 (Hong Kong and Madrid), Rublev has had a season full of positives and a few negatives. According to his coach, his season had everything.

“If we look back at the year… It’s still not over, but there has been a little bit of everything: there have been good weeks and some not so good,” said Vicente. “It seemed like we were playing well at the beginning of the year, with confidence, but things got difficult. He lost confidence at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, two matches that we didn’t expect. Not so much in terms of his game, but mentally.

“Knowing Andrey, he always has weeks like that. He works with a psychologist, he does things better, and we’ll see what happens. The highlight of the year, of course, was the win in Madrid. We didn’t expect it because he was not healthy and he managed to win the ATP Masters 1000.”

Rublev’s run in the Spanish capital, where he won the second Masters 1000 title of his career after his 2023 Monte-Carlo win, was hampered by tonsillitis. Coming to such great lengths to win in early May in Madrid is one of the main reasons Rublev is sitting sixth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin.

“We are keeping a close eye on Race, he is in the fight to finish the year qualifying [Nitto] The ATP Finals, that’s the real goal,” said Vicente. “And to be able to attack the final rounds of the Grand Slam as much as possible.”

Dimitrov is the only player standing between Rublev and a return to the Grand Slam quarter-finals, a round he has never made it past at any major. If he can defeat the Bulgarian on Sunday in New York, Rublev will have another chance to set that record straight.

Editor’s note: This story was translated from ATPtour.com/es