Andrey Rublev became the latest player to suffer a straight-sets defeat to Jannik Sinner on Thursday.
Sinner defeated Rublev 6-2, 6-4 in the quarterfinals of the Italian Open, and broke Novak Djokovic‘s record for the most consecutive match wins at ATP Masters 1000 events with 32.
Jannik Sinner is now a bigger favorite to win Roland Garros than Rafael Nadal ever was
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The Italian has not lost a match since his quarterfinal exit at the Qatar Open to Jakub Mensik, which marked his second defeat of the 2026 season.
Since then, Sinner has won four straight tournaments and looks set to continue dominating with Carlos Alcaraz sidelined due to injury.
Following the conclusion of the match, Rublev faced the media and discussed what it will take for anyone to overcome the world number one.
Andrey Rublev speaks after loss to Jannik Sinner in Rome
Asked in his post-match press conference if he thought he could not beat Sinner during their match, Rublev replied: “No, I was not thinking this.
“It was just I was fighting, keep doing everything I can and we see what’s going to happen. Yes, it takes you a lot of effort and focus to maintain this level.
“Some matches, maybe you miss one ball with the first shot, then the guy miss, 15-All. Here, you miss one ball, Love-15, then return comes deep. If you don’t play this ball good, it’s Love-30. That’s the difference.”
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Discussing potential candidates to snap Sinner’s winning streak, Rublev said: Let’s see. Alcaraz beats him many times.
“It’s true that both of them on top of the other players. So let’s see. The year still is going. The more players are coming, so let’s see.”
Andrey Rublev made ‘easy mistakes’ against Jannik Sinner
Rublev looked to be making a comeback in the second set against Sinner, during which he clinched a break of serve.
But ultimately Sinner secured his third straight victory over Rublev, and eighth overall in their head-to-head.
Reflecting on the match, Rublev said: “The impression was, as I said, to be able to play against him, you need to be able to maintain focus on a high level to be able to play that level consistently.
“Like I was explaining before, at 4-2, for example, I already drop a bit the focus and did easy mistakes. He didn’t even do anything. Without that, he broke me.
“He did like a few mistakes once. Only maybe second set 4-3 when he was set up and break, 40-Love. Hit double.
“Forehand, backhand mistake. Until then he wasn’t giving me free points. You have to force him to miss or you have to go for a shot to make a winner.”
Rublev’s last win over Sinner came at the Canadian Open during the 2024 season.
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