Russia’s Rublev powers on at Kazakh showpiece
Andrey Rublev made light work of French rival Adrian Mannarino as the Russian breezed into the semifinals of the Astana Open with a straight-sets victory on Friday.
Fifth seed Rublev dismantled Mannarino 6-1 6-2 in just under an hour at the ATP 500 indoor hard-court tournament in Kazakhstan, converting four of the five break points he manufactured against the world number 51.
Rublev, 24, will next face the winner of the quarterfinal match between Greek third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and Polish seventh seed Hubert Hurkacz, who meet later on Friday.
Rublev is chasing a fourth ATP Tour-level title of the year and a 12th of his career, while he is also bidding to secure one of eight spots in the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin next month.
Elsewhere in Astana, fellow Russians Daniil Medvedev and Karen Khachanov both play their quarterfinal matches on Friday.
Former world number one Medvedev – who is seeded second in Kazakhstan – takes on Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain, while Khachanov faces a formidable assignment against Novak Djokovic.
The winners of those matches will meet in Saturday’s second semifinal in Astana, with the final following on Sunday.
The total prize money on offer is $1.9 million. The winner of the men’s singles will net just over $355,000, with the runner-up taking home around $190,000.
