NEW YORK (Reuters) – World number seven Andrey Rublev made short work of veteran qualifier Ivo Karlovic in the U.S. Open first round on Monday, beating the tricky Croatian 6-3 7-6(3) 6-3.
The Russian came into the year’s final Grand Slam having reached the Cincinnati title clash and made a blistering start on Grandstand, winning the opening three games of the match before taking the first set with ease.
The 42-year-old Karlovic, the oldest U.S. Open qualifier in the Open Era, launched his comeback in the second set but Rublev held his nerve in the tiebreak, which he claimed with a forehand winner, before shifting gears in the final set.
After racing to a 5-3 lead, the 23-year-old former Flushing Meadows quarter-finalist closed out the match on the back of his superb serve, forcing a backhand error from the towering Karlovic on matchpoint.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; editing by Clare Fallon)
