Hubert Hurkacz beat his friend Jannik Sinner 6-3 6-3 after 85 minutes to reach the semifinal at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships without dropping a set this week.
The Polish player won 82% of his first serve points and did not face a break point.
Hurkacz converted his fourth break point in the sixth game at deuce to take a 4-2 lead. The world number 11 player held on his next service games to close out the first set 6-3.
Hurkacz went up a break in the third game to take a 2-1 lead. The Pole earned three match points on return at 0-40 in the ninth game and sealed the second set 6-3 on his third chance after 85 minutes.
Hurkacz now leads 2-1 in his three head-to-head matches against Sinner, including a win in the final of the Masters 1000 tournament in Miami last year. Hurkacz won two more titles last year in Metz and Delray Beach and reached the semifinals at Wimbledon.
“I am very pleased with my performance today. Jannik is a geat friend of mine. He is such a nice guy. He has been doing unbelievably. He is game is so good. It is so much fun to play in front of such a great crowd”, said Hurkacz.
Hurkacz set up a semifinal match against Andrey Rublev, who rallied from one set down to beat Mackenzie McDonald 2-6 6-3 6-1.
Rublev reached the semifinal in Rotterdam and won his first ATP Tour title since 2021 in Marseille last week. The Russian player has advanced to the Dubai semifinals for the second consecutive year.
McDonald raced out to a 5-0 lead with two breaks of serve. Rublev pulled one break back in the sixth game, but McDonald sealed the first set 6-2 with a break in the eighth game.
Rublev saved three break points in the second set before turning around the match with a crucial break in the fifth game to take a 3-2 lead. Rublev sealed the second set 6-3 with double break in the ninth game.
Rublev cruised through to a 6-1 lead in the third set with two breaks of serve in the second and fourth games. “I just tried to keep fighting to see what would happen. At 2-2 I managed to break him and then I started to play better and I changed the match. It is a great result and I am looking forward to seeing what happens tomorrow. I am super happy. The most important thing is to keep improving”, said Rublev.
