Rublev beats Vesely in Dubai for 10th title and 2nd in week

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Andrey Rublev won his second singles title in less than a week — and 10th overall — when he beat Czech qualifier Jiri Vesely 6-3, 6-4 in the final of the Dubai Championships on Saturday.

The seventh-ranked Russian won the Open 13 tournament last Sunday in Marseille, where he also took the doubles title with Ukrainian partner Denys Molchanov.

Vesely had knocked out Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals and reached the final by outlasting Denis Shapovalov in more than three hours on Friday.

“Both of us were super tired,” Rublev said in his on-court interview. “I didn’t expect this because I didn’t have time to adapt. It’s an amazing feeling. I feel super happy.”

On Friday, Rublev wrote “No War Please” on a TV camera moments after beating Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz in their semifinal.

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