Third-round action at the Cincinnati Open delivered fierce competition, as both established and rising stars secured breakthroughs in challenging matchups.
In a marathon battle that tested physical and mental limits, Andrey Rublev emerged victorious over Alexei Popyrin, prevailing 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 7-5 after a grueling three-and-a-half-hour duel. Despite Popyrin serving 20 aces and Rublev blasting 18 of his own, a late break in the decider tipped the scales in Rublev’s favour. “Both of us deserved to win,” said the Russian, reflecting on a match that epitomized resilience and endurance.
Elsewhere, Adrian Mannarino pulled off a gritty comeback against Tommy Paul. After dropping the first set 5-7, the French qualifier rebounded to take the next two 6-3, 6-4, booking a high-stakes fourth-round clash against top seed Jannik Sinner.
In another thrilling encounter, Benjamin Bonzi shocked the draw by downing Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-4. The Frenchman recovered from an opening-set tiebreak loss to consistently press Tsitsipas, earning a spot in the round of 16 where he'll face a red-hot Felix Auger-Aliassime.
With Rublev grinding through to the later stages, Mannarino’s upset setting up a marquee match with Sinner, and Bonzi’s upset adding to the week’s unpredictability—Cincinnati’s third round proved once again why it's one of tennis’s most electrifying Masters 1000 events.
