Carlos Alcaraz overcame illness to beat Andrei Rublev in impressive fashion to revive his ATP Finals hopes 6-3 7-6 (10-8) in Turin.
The four-time Grand Slam champion had been suffering from respiratory problems during the week, which contributed to his first-round loss to Casper Rude on Monday.
But the third seed, bidding to win a season-ending final for the first time, looked much sharper against Rublev, condemning his opponent to a second loss in as many matches as he had won in straight sets.
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Alcaraz stuns the Turin crowd as he switches from defense to attack with a brilliant strike against Rublev
After splitting the opening six games, Alcaraz decisively broke Rublev’s serve with a scorching forehand winner and ran off five straight games to take control of the match.
Rublev, who also lost his opener to Alexander Zverev, was able to hang with Alcaraz in the second set and could have earned a couple of break points at 2-2 if he hadn’t missed a routine point after hit.
Both players served well to take the match into a high-octane tiebreak, with Alcaraz having to fend off two set points before sealing victory with his second match point.
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A brilliant backhand winner from Alcaraz saw him take a 5-3 lead against Rublev in the second set tiebreak.
Rublev has now lost six straight sets in ATP finals since reaching the semifinals in 2022.
Alcarazi still needs to beat world No. 2 Zverev in his final group match on Friday to qualify for the final four.
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