Canadian Open: Alexei Popyrin stuns world No. 6 Andrey Rublev in straight sets for maiden Masters 1000 title in Montreal

Alexei Popyrin became the first Australian in over two decades to win a Masters 1000 title as he swept past world No. 6 Andrey Rublev in the Canadian Open final. The Australian only needed an hour and a half to overcome the Russian, whose temper continued to boil over, 6-2 6-4. Popyrin was a surprise winner of his biggest title to date, defeating five top-20 players en route to the trophy.

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Alexei Popyrin became the first Australian in over two decades to win a Masters title as he stunned world No. 6 Andrey Rublev in Montreal.

Popyrin needed just 90 minutes to sweep past the volatile Russian 6-2 6-4 to win his maiden ATP Masters 1000 trophy and just the third title of his career.

The Australian was ranked 62nd in the world before this week but will rise to 23rd after a blistering run through the draw, taking out five top-20 players.

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“It means so much, it means the world,” an emotional Popyrin said.

“All the hard work that I’ve put in over the last few years. All the sacrifices that I’ve made, not just me but my family, my girlfriend, my team, everybody around me.

“They’ve just sacrificed their lives for me and for me to win this for them is just amazing.”

The 25-year-old beat seventh seed Grigor Dimitrov, 11th seed and rising star Ben Shelton, huge-serving fourth seed Hubert Hurkacz, and Seb Korda, winner of the Washington title last week, to reach the final.

Rublev had taken out top seed Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals and was aiming for a second Masters title of the year after winning the Madrid Open in May, but could not find an answer against an inspired Popyrin.

The Russian's infamous temper boiled over at points as he screamed at himself for errors, including successive double faults in his first service game to gift Popyrin an early break.

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Despite this being the biggest final of Popyrin's career, he appeared nerveless, producing three aces to recover from two break points down in the fourth game, and recovering from losing service at 3-3 in the second set to immediately break back.

He had been the lowest-ranked finalist in Montreal since Harel Levy in 2000, but was a level above Rublev throughout as he sealed victory on his third match point, with his forehand in particular troubling the Russian.

Rublev congratulated his opponent on the victory and an "amazing week."

“He beat really great players,” the Russian said. “He was having a really tough draw, finishing last night really late and then won the title. It’s a really big achievement.”

The Australian wrote "What just happened!" on the TV camera lens after his scalp and will be full of confidence heading into the US Open in two weeks' time, where he will be seeded for the first time at a grand slam.

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Popyrin has a 100% record in senior finals, winning his first in Singapore in 2021 before adding a trophy in Umag, Croatia, last year.

He last played on the Roland Garros clay, where he won the French Open as a junior, losing to eventual gold medallist Novak Djokovic in the Paris Olympics last week.

The last Australian player before Popyrin to win a Masters event was Lleyton Hewitt, who won back-to-back Indian Wells titles while world No. 1 in 2002 and 2003.

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