The finalists of the European Open have been announced: Alexander Bublik and Arthur Fils will fight for the highly desirable European Open trophy. Fils defeated first seed Stefanos Tsitsipas after a furiously exciting match, Bublik was able to win against Marterer, after another match full of suspense. Fireworks guaranteed on Sunday in a packed Lotto Arena!
At the Lotto Arena, an epic semi-final unfolded between first seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and 19-year-old sensation Arthur Fils. The first set was a true tennis masterpiece. Tsitsipas and Fils stood their ground and forced each other to bring out their best tennis: powerful strokes, impressive rallies and precise net actions kept the audience spellbound. The set was finally decided in a nerve-wracking tiebreak, in which the young Fils managed to win with extreme precision. Tennis of the highest order.
In the second set, Fils continued his impressive performance. He broke through Tsitsipas’ serve early and held on. At 5-4 on Fils’ serve, the match seemed to tilt in his favour. Tsitsipas, known for his fighting spirit, fought back and rebalanced the set to 6-6. This again resulted in a breathtaking tiebreak. A Lotto Arena filled to the brim went completely crazy! The tension in this tiebreak made the venue shake. Fils initially took a lead, but Tsitsipas did not give up and fought with all he had in him. In the end, it was Arthur Fils who kept his cool and decided the match in his favour with determination and an impressive final shot. With this victory, the 19-year-old Frenchman qualified for the final of the European Open after a great dose of drama and heroism.
Earlier in the day, another top match was on the menu, in which Kazakh tennis player Alexander Bublik faced German Maximilian Marterer. Despite the defiance offered by Marterer, Bublik managed to hold his lead and put first set in a final fold.
Marterer was determined to fight back. He gave an impressive display in his own service games. Remarkably, he managed to save no fewer than three match balls in the second set, pushing the tension on the court to the limit. The fans were treated to some nerve-wracking moments as Marterer continued to defend valiantly.
Unfortunately for Marterer, the effort proved in vain as Bublik served out with conviction in the ensuing game to end the match. Bublik, known for his entertaining style of play and powerful serves, managed to maintain the upper hand in this exciting semi-final. In each set, he broke Marterer once, which was enough to secure victory.
A very exciting double closed the evening. The Tsitsipas brothers played against Arneodo/Weissborn. Stefanos continued to juggle as in the singles with some beautiful strokes. However, it was the duo across the net who won the first set: 6-4. In a balanced second set, a tiebreak had to bring the decision: 8-6 for the Tsitsipas brothers, time for a super tiebreak! Again it remained a draw. In the end it was 13-11, the Tsitsipas brothers to the final!
