Rodionov equals the biggest title and breaks into the top 90

Yuri Rodionov has been training under the leadership of the former world number 17 since the end of last year. Gilbert Schaller. This new partnership has made an excellent start to the new season: while the 24-year-old was eliminated in the first round of the ATP 125 Challenger tournament in Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve last week, he was eliminated this week in Koblenz VII. Challenger title in his career, the fourth time in the 100 category. And in impressive fashion: the top seed from Lower Austria (ATP 108) remained without dropping a set in his first four matches, and finally defeated the second-placed USA. Team in the final American Brandon Nakashima (ATP 96) 6:7 ​​(7), 6:1, 6:2 after a fight that lasted 2:27 hours. Rodionov broke into the top 100 for the first time on 28 August 2023 with a precise drop, and his ATP ranking of 100 subsequently remained his previous career high. He will now improve this significantly thanks to the 100 ATP points he gained in Germany: he will break into the top 90, moving to exactly 89th place on Monday, thus becoming the new second Austrian, ahead of Dominic Thiem (91st in the year). The direct ranking)… Only Sebastian Offner is ahead of him (38th in the direct ranking).

Rodionov has previously won at the ATP Challenger level in Almaty 2018, Dallas and Morelos 2020, Biel and Mauthausen 2022, and again at Biel 2023. His current finish at the Koblenz Open in southwest Germany is fifth on hard courts, including fourth in the ATP Championship. Inside the halls. It was a well-deserved success, as the red, white and red could have won the first round of the final after four convincing victories in two sets – there was only one point missing, at 6:5 in the tie-break and therefore one set point. Previously, both had managed to hold serve six times, having saved four break points from either side, including two set points from Nakashima in the twelfth game. After losing the set narrowly, the Matzen player continued his previous performances smoothly. After 30-0 for Nakashima, he broke serve for the first time in the second section to make the score 2-0, then destroyed his only break point in this round. At 3-1 and leaving that double break at 4:1 followed. In the decision, Rodionov immediately took a 4-0 lead and had little trouble finishing his work again at the end: he had given up no less than seven match points (two as a returner at 5:1, five as a server at 5:2). , before taking advantage of his eighth match point after he once again saved a break of serve and was able to cheer freely.

Rodionov “incredibly happy and grateful”

So Rodionov was very happy, also about his beautiful jump up the ATP rankings: “It's always worth sticking with,” he wrote afterwards on his official Facebook page. “I am very happy and grateful that I was able to achieve this win.” Against Nakashima, “It was not an easy match at the beginning, but in the end I was able to put in a very strong performance.” He stressed on his official Instagram page: “My seventh title means a lot to me.” Hard work pays off.