ATP Masters 1000 Montreal final
Rublev – Popyrin: 13.08.2024 01:30 CEST
H2H: 1-1
Andrey Rublev has won four of his last five matches. After his recent disappointing results, Andrey stepped up last week in Washington. He reached the quarterfinals, where he lost against Tiafoe in straight sets. Here in Montreal, Rublev won his first match against Etcheverry in straight sets as we predicted. In the second round, Andrey continued in the same fashion, winning against Nakashima in easy straight sets. Rublev served well, not offering any breakpoints. After that, in the quarterfinals, Andrey upset the world number 1, Jannik Sinner, in three sets. This was definitely Andrey’s biggest win of the season. Yesterday in the semifinals, Rublev had another great serving performance against Arnaldi. He ended up winning the match 6-4 6-2. Once again, Andrey did not lose his serve. Earlier this season, Rublev won the Masters title in Madrid, where he won against Auger-Aliassime in a thriller match. At the beginning of the season, Rublev won the title in his first tournament of the season, which was in Hong Kong. After that, Andrey reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, where he lost against Sinner in straight sets.
Alexei Popyrin has won five straight matches. Two weeks ago in Paris, Popyrin lost in the 1/8-Finals of the Olympic Games against Zverev in straight tight sets. Here in Montreal, Alexei defeated Machac in straight sets. Popyrin lost his serve once at the beginning of the second set, but stepped up his level, and turned the set immediately around. After that, in the second round, Popyrin won against Shelton in straight sets as we predicted. It was a great serving performance from him, not offering any breakpoints. In the 1/8-Finals, Alexei upset Dimitrov in a thriller match. It was another aggressive performance from Alexei, who ended up hitting 24 winners with 21 unforced errors. Even after losing the first set, Popyrin stayed calm and turned the match around successfully. The Australian is looking great this week. In the quarterfinals, Alexei lost the first set once again. This time, it was against Hurkacz. However, Alexei ended up winning the match in three close sets, after spending almost three hours on the court. Popyrin won the most crucial points in the match. Yesterday, in the semifinals, Alexei upset Korda in straight sets. The first set was an absolute roller coaster. Both players were not performing well under pressure. However, once again, Popyrin won the most crucial points and won the first set after an amazing tiebreak. The second set was one-sided from the very start, so Popyrin managed to close it out without any major problems. This will be his first Masters final.
Best Bet to Make
According to the bookies, Popyrin is the big underdog in this matchup. Once again, the bookies are not trusting him. Alexei was the underdog throughout the whole tournament, but kept winning. We believe that this will be a very close match.
That being said, Popyrin covering the games handicap is a value bet.
Value bet/ the best odds: Alexei Popyrin +2.5 games handicap @2.10 @bet365
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
