Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan defeated defending champion Jannik Sinner in the second round of the Halle grass tournament. The world number one suffered a 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 loss to the 45th-ranked Bublik, marking his first defeat to a player outside the top 20 since summer 2023.Sinner had previously dominated Bublik in their French Open quarter-final matchup, losing only six games. This victory marked Bublik’s second win in six encounters against Sinner, coming just ten days before Wimbledon.“We are tennis players and we try to win every match we play, but it is a special one. I had never beaten a No. 1 in the world. It is an accomplishment,” Bublik said.Sinner, who had defeated Yannick Hanfmann in straight sets in the opening round, controlled the first set against Bublik without facing a break point. Despite having three break points early in the second set, Sinner couldn’t capitalise. Bublik seized control, hitting 20 winners and securing a crucial break in the sixth game.
The Kazakh player secured a decisive break in the third set with an impressive forehand shot.“I had an amazing forehand to break in the third set, and then I kept serving. On grass, if you lose your serve, it is maybe tough, and I am a guy who doesn’t lose a lot of serves. I just kept serving and putting him in uncomfortable positions, and it worked well.”“He is an unbelievable player, and I was not thinking that I could beat him. But I had a few chances and executed them well,” said Bublik. Bublik will face Tomas Machac in the quarter-finals, following the Czech’s 6-2, 6-3 victory over Hungarian Fabian Marozsan.World number three Alexander Zverev overcame Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego in a three-set match. The German secured a 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/2) win against the 46th-ranked Italian.Zverev, who reached the Halle finals in 2016 and 2017, maintained his perfect record against Sonego with his fifth consecutive victory. He will next face Italian Flavio Cobolli in the quarter-finals.Sonego capitalised on his only break opportunity at 4-3 in the first set. Zverev struggled with his opponent’s serve throughout the match but managed to win the second set at 5-4 before dominating the final set tiebreak. In another match, Argentina’s 63rd-ranked Tomas Martin Etcheverry advanced to the quarter-finals. He defeated fourth seed Andrey Rublev 6-3, 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (8/6) in a three-hour battle.Etcheverry saved two match points in the final set tiebreak to earn a quarter-final clash with Russia’s Karen Khachanov.
