For the second time in three years, Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan has won the Halle Open. In both grass court ATP finals in Germany, Bublik beat a Russian in the final. In 2023, Bublik beat Andrey Rublev 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. On Sunday in the final, Bublik beat 2021 United States Open champion and the third seed Daniil Medvedev, 6-3, 7-6.
There were three major reasons Bublik beat Medvedev. The first was the fact that Bublik broke Medvedev in the first set. The second was the fact that Bublik beat Medvedev 7-4 in the second set tiebreak to close out the match. Bublik also had the dominant statistical advantage when it came to winning percentage on the second serve. Bublik was at 88% and Medvedev was at 57%.
Throughout the tournament, Bublik beat three other seeds in addition to Medvedev. He stunned world number one and three-time major champion Jannik Sinner of Italy 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the second round, the seventh seed and Mexican Open champion Tomas Machac of Czech Republic, 7-6, 6-3 in the quarterfinals, and the eighth seed and two-time grand slam semifinalist Karen Khachanov of Russia, 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the semifinals.
This was the second time in six meetings Bublik has beaten Sinner. The first time came in the quarterfinals of Halle in 2023. This was the first time in seven meetings that Bublik beat Medvedev.
Bublik has won five ATP titles overall. In addition to his two Halle titles, he won the 2022 and 2024 Open Sud de France in Montpellier, and the 2023 European Open in Belgium. Bublik will now climb to 30th in the world rankings with the victory and will be seeded for Wimbledon.
