Holder Rublev ambushed in Madrid

Andrey Rublev dropped to 1-4 this season in Masters 1000 events as the Madrid defending champion was taken out 6-4, 0-6, 6-4 by Alexander Bublik on Sunday..

Rublev won the Doha title in February but has lost opening matches at Masters events in Indian Wells and Miami while reaching the Monte Carlo third round.

Kazakh outsider Bublik ranked 75th  stands 3-5 in the series with the seventh seed  Rublev had hoped to add Bublik to the short list of players he has defeated six times: Felix Auger-Aliassime and Fabio Fognini.

The third-round match was the first time on court for Rublev, who had a bye in the pening round and a walkover in the second when intended opponent Gael Monfils withdrew with injury.

Both men threw down a dozen aces, with Bublik also producing six double-faults and dropping serve three times but firing 33 winners.

Top seed Alexander Zverev needed just short of three hours to subdue Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, coming from behind for a 2-6, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (0) victory.

The win by the German reduces Spanish home players to zero as ADF, a  Monte Carlo semi-finalist, took the loss, his fifth in six matches with Zverev. 

The showing is the worst in history for Spain at the Madrid event which began in 2002 on hardcourt before switching to clay more than a decade and a half ago.

Main photo:- Alexander Bublik winning in Madrid – by ATPTour.com/Madrid Mutua