Tomas Martin Etcheverry defeated Andrey Rublev 6–4, 6–7(4), 7–6(3) in the first round of the Paris Masters on November 3, surviving a match that lasted two hours and 49 minutes.
The Argentine’s serve was central to the result. Tennis.com’s completed scorecard recorded 20 aces and six saved break points for Etcheverry, who held all 17 of his service games. Rublev hit 12 aces and dropped serve only once.
After losing the opening set, Rublev levelled the match by winning the second-set tie-break 7–4. Etcheverry responded in the deciding breaker, taking it 7–3 to advance rather than allowing the earlier missed opportunity to decide the contest.
The result followed another three-set meeting between the pair in Halle in 2025, also won by Etcheverry. He will next face Alex de Minaur in Paris. With only one break of serve across the match, the final tie-break proved decisive in separating two players who repeatedly protected their service games.
Archive photo (July 2024): Tomas Martin Etcheverry hitting a forehand at the Paris Olympics. Photo: “Tomás Martin Etcheverry - 2024 Olympics” by Kuberzog, CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized; adaptation shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. This image is not from the November 2026 match.
