Last year, Rublev entered the tournament’s main draw as the Lucky loser after Croatia’s Borna Ćorić decided to drop out at the last moment due to a neck injury. Rublev seized the opportunity in the best way possible and went from lucky loser to title winner, beating title defender Fabio Fognini on his way to the final, and then Fognini’s compatriot Paolo Lorenzi in the final match.
He is currently ranked 31st in the ATP Rankings. Apart from his Umag title, he also has a doubles title from Moscow’s Kremlin Cup that he won together with Dmitry Tursunov back in 2015. Furthermore, last year was the most successful year of his career: apart from claiming his first singles title, he also reached the quarterfinals of the US Open, his best Grand Slam result ever.
Last year, as the youngest winner of the tournament in Umag, Rublev was presented with the trophy by Goran Ivanišević, who once again expects the Russian to do great on the courts of Stella Maris.
“Last year, Rublev was a breath of fresh air at the tournament. Nobody expected him to go all the way, and as much as he had surprised himself, he also surprised all of us. But that’s the beauty of the tournament in Umag, as each year it gives us yet another extraordinary story. The atmosphere there is special for all the players and sometimes it inspires them to go that extra mile that they didn't even think they had in them. Still, the thing that we know for sure is that, this year, we are in for another great tournament. The fact that title defenders return to Umag year after year shows you just how much this tournament means for the world of tennis,” Goran Ivanišević concluded.
