ATP Tour

De Minaur saves 10 BPs vs. Humbert, reaches 3rd straight Rotterdam final

Alex de Minaur summoned a surge of impressive shotmaking when under pressure on Saturday at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam, where he powered into his third consecutive final at the ATP 500 event.

The Australian saved all 10 break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats, to defeat Ugo Humbert 6-4, 6-3 in one hour, 31 minutes. De Minaur, who finished runner-up in each of the past two editions, is now the first player in tournament history to reach three straight championship matches.

His love affair with Rotterdam continues 🌹@alexdeminaur becomes the first man to reach the @abnamroopen final in three consecutive years! #abnamroopen pic.twitter.com/FF03pdXC6X

— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 14, 2026

"I'm super proud of the efforts," said De Minaur, the No. 8 player in the PIF ATP Rankings. "Today, again, there were a lot of tough moments, a lot of break points, a lot of tricky situations... But I managed to dig myself out of them and I'm super pumped to be in another final here and give myself another chance of hopefully getting the title.

"It's hard to get a lot of rhythm against him [Humbert]. He looks to get the first strike in the rally whenever he can. He's such a clean ballstriker and there's not too many rallies that go up so it's really hard to get that rhythm and feel comfortable. Not every match you get the chance to be aggressive. Today was one I was certainly not able to do that, but hey, I found a way."

Chasing a long-awaited Rotterdam crown, De Minaur will face former champion Felix Auger-Aliassime in Sunday’s final. The 26-year-old also strengthened his form at the ATP 500s, extending his Tour-leading total to 52 wins at that level since the start of the 2023 season.

ATP 500 Win Leaders (since start of 2023 season)

Although Humbert showed his spirit, it was the Australian who proved unshakable in the decisive moments. Combining relentless precision with trademark defensive grit, De Minaur repeatedly absorbed pressure and forced errors on key points, particularly in a tense second set in which Humbert earned four of his break opportunities.

With the win, De Minaur improved to 6-2 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against the Frenchman. Humbert will next compete at the ATP 500 in Doha, where he opens against Fabian Marozsan.

Auger-Aliassime later dispatched Alexander Bublik 6-1, 6-2 to extend his winning streak to eight matches having lifted his first trophy of the season in Montpellier last week. The 25-year-old is into his ninth ATP Tour final, which is a new record for the most among Canadians in the Open Era.

Sunday's championship-match clash between the top two seeds will also mark Auger-Aliassime's third title showdown in Rotterdam, where he won his maiden title in 2022. The Canadian leads 3-1 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

"Every day when you come out on a streak, you don't know if it will be the night it is going to end, but tonight wasn't the night," said Auger-Aliassime. "It was for sure my best match in a long time. The efficiency, the precision, the intentions... I was just striking the ball well. When you feel like that on the court, it's a joy to play tennis."

Auger-Aliassime then looked ahead to Sunday's final: "I think it's a great matchup. No. 1 seed against No. 2 seed. He's fallen short the past two years... It's no time to be friends. We have a lot of respect for each other, but at the same time, only one can lift the trophy, so we both have to go for it."

Auger-Aliassime's authoritative semi-final win, which was his first victory over a Top 10 opponent this season, was another compelling reminder of his indoor prowess. He boasts a Tour-leading 93 wins in these conditions since the start of the 2020 season, including eight titles.