Bublik upsets defending champion Rublev in Madrid

Alexander Bublik upset defending champion Andrey Rublev 6-4, 0-6, 6-4 on Sunday at the Mutua Madrid Open to record his 10th Top 10 win.

The 27-year-old stuck 33 winners, including 12 aces, according to Infosys ATP Stats in a powerful performance on Arantxa Sanchez Stadium to advance to the fourth round in Madrid for the fourth time.

With his 84 minute win, Bublik improved to 3-5 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Rublev, who won his second ATP Masters 1000 title in the Spanish capital 12 months ago.

Rublev triumphed in Doha earlier this season but now holds a 1-4 record at ATP Masters 1000 events this year, with his lone with coming in Monte-Carlo, the venue of his maiden Masters 1000 title in 2023.

The 27-year-old struggled to time the ball from the baseline and was unable to recover an early break in the third set against Bublik and will now leave the Top 10 for the first time since September 2022 following his 10th defeat of the year.

Bublik will next face Ben Shelton or Miami champion Jakub Mensik in the last 16.

In other third-round action, Brandon Nakashima moved past Italian Flavio Cobolli to reach the fourth round at a Masters 1000 event for the fifth time but the first outside North America. The American won the majority of the backhand baseline exchanges to record a 7-5, 6-3 victory in the Spanish capital.

Nakashima is up three spots to No. 29 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and is on course to rise to a career high following the completion of the clay-court event. The former Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF champion will next meet Daniil Medvedev or Juan Manuel Cerundolo.