The Andrey Rublev miracle. Winner of the Masters 1000 in Madrid, his second after Monte-Carlo last year, the Russian assured that he had to fight against illness throughout the tournament, before defeating the Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime in the final (4-6, 7-5, 7-5).
“I have no words. If you knew what I’ve been through these last nine days, you wouldn’t imagine me capable of winning a titlehe said on the court following his victory. I am incredibly happy. I would say it’s the title I’m most proud of in my career. I was almost dead every day, I didn’t sleep at night. The last three or four days I haven’t slept. I was close to withdrawing from the tournament, because there were some problems that I couldn’t fix. I have to congratulate the doctors, they are magical. They are the best on the circuit. »
“Can’t eat, huge headache!” »
At the start of the third set, Rublev called the doctor, who gave him a pill. The one who will be world number 6 this Monday, May 6, gave details of the illness from which he suffers. “For nine days, impossible to swallow, impossible to eat and huge headachesaid the Russian at a press conference. I don’t know exactly what it is, if it’s sore throat, a virus, but my throat is completely blocked.This is the first time I’ve felt this bad in my life. And I won the tournament thanks to the anti-inflammatories during the match which allowed me to last three hours. »
Add to this a ” inflammation “ who did “double in size” one of his toes, to the point of preventing him from ” put (her) foot in (her) shoe “. “They anesthetized it for me, so that I wouldn’t feel it”assures Rublev, all the more miraculous as he arrived in Madrid without the slightest confidence.
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Since his disqualification in Dubai at the beginning of March for shouting his anger a few centimeters from a linesman’s face, the Russian had won a match (in Indian Wells), then nothing. Neither in Miami, nor in Monte-Carlo, where he was the title holder, nor in Barcelona. He remained on four consecutive defeats.
