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Andrey Rublev says Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev losing very early at the Paris Masters doesn't really change much for him since he is in Novak Djokovic's part of the draw. The bottom half of the Paris Masters draw was left wide open after No 2 seed Alcaraz and third-seeded Medvedev suffered shock second-round exit.
On Thursday, Rublev saw off Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3 6-3 to reach the Paris quarterfinal. Rublev, who plays next against Alex de Minaur, could possibly meet Djokovic in the semifinal. When asked about Alcaraz and Medvedev's shock exits, Rublev funnily pointed out to the fact that it is Djokovic who is in his part of the draw.
“Yeah but they are all on the other [half of] draw. If I was down [in the bottom half], yes. But I am up [in the top half] and there is Novak and there’s still all of them are there. So doesn’t matter that Daniil or Carlos, they are not in the draw because they are not in my part," Rublev told Yasmin Syed of Express-Sport.
Rublev on his Paris run
After a first-round bye, Rublev saw off Yoshihito Nishioka and van de Zandschulp in straight sets to routinely reach the Paris quarterfinal. Prior to coming to Paris, Rublev ended as runner-up at the Shanghai Masters and he was also a semifinalist at last week's ATP 500 event in Vienna. “I’m just playing really good at the moment, last couple of months and I’m feeling better and better.
It’s not about Masters or any other tournaments in general, I played well last week in Vienna, I played great in Shanghai. So I don’t know, since US Open I’m playing really well and just keeping this level and somehow I’m improving and I don’t know, we’ll see what’s going to happen next," Rublev said.
Earlier this year, 26-year-old Rublev became a Masters champion in Monte Carlo. It remains to be seen if Rublev can win his second Masters in Paris.