Andrey Rublev and Karen Khachanov are going to face Stefanos Tsitsipas and Hyeon Chung in Abu Dhabi after replacing Gael Monfils and Daniil Medvedev at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship. Both Daniil and Gael were meant to play back to back the Diriyah Tennis Cup in Saudi Arabia and the MWTC. Unfortunately, both got injured to skip Abu Dhabi. Daniil announced his retirement soon after he won the event in Saudi Arabia because of a problem with his leg. Medvedev decided to fly immediately to France to have a proper check ahead of his Australian Summer. It’s not clear what was Gael’s injury. However, he didn’t look at his very best when he faced Fognini in Saudi Arabia.
The statements from Khachanov, Rublev, Monfils and Medvedev
Karen is happy for playing in Abu Dhabi to comment: “I can’t wait to return to the Mubadala World Tennis Championship and to Abu Dhabi after a great experience last year. The weather is fantastic and the fans really know their tennis. The setup is superb, the crowd can really get involved, and it also offers the perfect opportunity to get the new season off and running with some hard matches.”
Rublev already played in the past to say: “I was fortunate enough to experience this championship a couple of years ago. With a very strong lineup, it’s an opportunity to start the season with very competitive matches. The people of Abu Dhabi are great and I’m looking forward to catching up with old friends and making new ones.”
Gael was meant to end a 9 years’ absence from the Mubadala World Tennis Championship to comment: “I always enjoy coming to Abu Dhabi and was excited to be playing there once again. Due to injury, that’s not going to be possible, but I hope to see you all soon.”
Daniil is still hopeful of playing again in Abu Dhabi to say: “I was really looking forward to making my debut in Abu Dhabi, so it is with deep regret that I have had to withdraw through injury. I hope to make the trip in the future, and I wish everyone a hugely successful championship.”
Stefanos Tsitsipas v Andrey Rublev will kick start the event on Thursday and the winner will take on Novak Djokovic in the semifinal. Then it will be time for Karen Khachanov and Hyeon Chung to play each other for a place in the final 4. The winner will clash against Rafael Nadal.
Andrey Rublev’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.23, Rublev played his last match on the 28th of October when he had to bow to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 4-6 7-5 6-4 in the 1st round in Paris.
This year Andrey has a 50-27 win-loss record. Andrey conquered 1 title in Moscow. The Russian was the finalist in the Indian Wells Challenger and in Hamburg.
Stefanos Tsitsipas’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.6, Tsitsipas played his last match on the 17th of November when he overcame Dominic Thiem 6-76 6-2 7-64 in the final in London to win his 4th career title.
This year Stefanos has a 53-25 win-loss record. Tsitsipas has won 3 titles in 2019 in Marseille, in Estoril and in London. The Greek was the finalist in Dubai, in Madrid and in Beijing.
Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas played each other 2 times. The head to head is 1-1.
The last time that they played each other, Andrey Rublev won 6-4 6-75 7-67 7-5 in the 1st round in New York (U.S. Open) on the 27th of August 2019.
Here the highlights.
Karen Khachanov’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.17, Khachanov played his last match on the 29th of October when he had to surrender to Jan-Lennard Struff 7-65 3-6 7-5 in the 2nd round in Paris.
Karen Khachanov’s best performance of this year was getting to the semi-finals in Montreal and Beijing.
Hyeon Chung’s ranking and performance in 2019
Ranked no.128, Chung played his last match on the 24th of October when he surrendered to Andrey Rublev 6-4 6-2 in the 2nd round in Vienna.
This year the Korean has a 17-10 win-loss record. Hyeon clinched 1 title in the Chengdu Challenger.
Karen Khachanov and Hyeon Chung have never played each other.
Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Karen Khachanov and Hyeon Chung |
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