It hasn’t been the best season for Hubert Hurkacz.
Entering the Shanghai Open, Hurkacz, 26, had reached just one final — winning the 250-level Open 13 in France in February — and failed to advance past the fourth round at any major. While he had made the semifinals in Cincinnati, he hadn’t advanced past the third round at any other 1000-level event. After finishing the 2021 and 2022 seasons inside the top 10, it seemed unlikely he would even have a chance to replicate that feat in 2023.
But everything changed last week.
Arriving in Shanghai ranked No. 17, the Polish player hadn’t played a tournament-level match since a surprising second-round defeat at the US Open. But he showed few signs of rust or of lingering disappointment.
He held off Ben Shelton in three hard-fought sets in the quarters with relative ease, and in the semifinals, Hurkacz defeated Sebastian Korda, who had handed No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev a straight-sets loss in the third round. Hurkacz won the match 6-3, 6-4 to advance to the final.
Facing the red-hot Andrey Rublev, who had defeated an impressive list of seeded players throughout his time at the tournament, the big-serving Hurkacz had 21 aces and saved match point during a third-set tiebreak. With Roger Federer in the crowd, Hurkacz recorded a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (8) victory on Sunday.
It marked the second 1000-level title of his career, his first since 2021, and his seventh ATP title overall. It was just his second top-10 win of the season and all of the emotions he was feeling at the end of the two-hour-and-nine-minute battle were visible on his face as he lifted his arms up in celebration.
Never forget 🤩
The moment @HubertHurkacz wins the biggest title of his season.#RolexShanghaiMasters | @SH_RolexMasters pic.twitter.com/RWYlTRqJIC
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 15, 2023
Hurkacz, who saw his ranking rise back to No. 11 with the victory, later told reporters it was “definitely” the most exciting finish to a match he had ever played. He later posted on social media about what the title meant to him.
“This one feels special,” he wrote in part. “This season hasn’t been easy but I never stopped believing.”
Here’s what else you might have missed from around the tennis world last week:
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