Jannik Sinner sent a powerful message to his French Open competitors with a dominant performance against Andrey Rublev in the last 16 on Monday. The world number one breezed past the Russian 17th seed, securing a convincing 6-1, 6-3, 6-4 victory during the night session on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Despite Rublev seeming a formidable opponent on paper, Sinner faced little resistance. “Things can go very quickly in a bad way, especially best of five, it can go very long,” Sinner remarked. “I’m very happy to finish it in three. These night sessions in Paris are very special.”
The Italian star, who made his comeback in May at the Rome tournament following a three-month doping ban, now advances to the quarter-finals where he will meet unseeded Kazakh Alexander Bublik. Sinner leads their head-to-head record 3-1, though he lost their most recent match on grass in Halle in 2023.
Sinner is targeting his third straight Grand Slam crown, having captured the US Open title last year and followed it with back-to-back Australian Open triumphs. Monday’s victory also served as personal redemption, avenging his 2022 Roland Garros exit to Rublev, when he was forced to retire injured in the third set.
The 23-year-old delivered a clinical display, hitting five aces and 25 winners past a rattled Rublev. Reflecting on his composed demeanor, Sinner admitted, “Inside there’s a storm going on but tennis is a very mental game and you don’t want to show anything to your opponent. In my young career, the storm was also outside, not only inside.”
Though Rublev showed some resistance, especially in the third set, his only break point since the opening game slipped away. Sinner maintained his composure and service games, closing the match on his first match point when Rublev’s forehand clipped the net and veered wide.
