ABN AMRO Open Round-Up | Alex de Minaur and Alexander Bublik survive marathon quarterfinal thrillers

This Friday the quarterfinals of the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam were completed, with the victory of top seed Alex de Minaur over the last local player remaining in the competition – Botic van de Zandschulp – who, despite a good battle, ended up being eliminated, while De Minaur is now one step away from his third consecutive final in Rotterdam.

The night session delivered another epic battle of almost three hours, in which world No. 10 Alexander Bublik survived a notable Jaume Munar and ultimately closed out the victory in the third-set tie-break. It is the 7th time that Bublik has reached the semifinals in the last 52 weeks – and he has won the title in five of the previous six.

Top seed Alex de Minaur (No. 8) had it especially complicated on this occasion to get past the quarterfinals against Botic van de Zandschulp (No. 65), but he showed his hierarchy to extend his winning streak in Rotterdam. The Australian player maintained his composure in the important moments, and after an early disadvantage, managed to be sharper in the critical stages of the match in the second and third sets. Victory for the Australian 3-6, 7-6(4), 7-5, who is now just one win away from returning to the Rotterdam final for the third consecutive year.

In the first set, Van de Zandschulp showed his usual strength on serve and held on to it to keep up with De Minaur’s rhythm. The Australian was somewhat erratic in the opening set – with 11 unforced errors and only two winners – which his rival took advantage of. A single break in the sixth game was enough for the local player to take the lead in the first set and finish closing it out with his serve at 6-3.

For the first time in the tournament, De Minaur dropped a set – after straight-sets victories over Arthur Fils and Stan Wawrinka – and he would have to work hard to recover. In the second set the Australian had a 74% first-serve percentage, winning 78% of those points – although he conceded up to three break opportunities to his opponent. Van de Zandschulp was unable to convert them and everything went to the tie-break, in which De Minaur handled the pressure of the moment better and ended up taking the set on his second set point, 7-6(4), after more than an hour of play.

In the third set the tensions remained. Although the world No. 8 began with a break and moved ahead to 2-0, just a few minutes later Van de Zandschulp broke back and restored parity at 2-2. The Dutchman stayed in front with solid service games and without facing risks until 5-4. It was there that De Minaur showed his ability to face mentally complicated moments, and he did not succumb to the pressure of closing out the match. The Australian won 12 of the last 16 games played – and three games in a row – sealing the victory 3-6, 7-6(4), 7-5.

With this, De Minaur secured his place in Saturday’s semifinals, where he will face the Frenchman Ugo Humbert and will seek to reach the Rotterdam final for the third consecutive year, where he fell on both previous occasions: in 2024 against Jannik Sinner, and in 2025 against Carlos Alcaraz. This time, without the top two in the draw, it could be the Australian’s chance to capture the title he has previously come so close to winning.

On paper, Bublik (No. 10) appeared as the favourite, especially considering the indoor hard-court circumstances, which naturally favour the Kazakh against a player like Jaume Munar (No. 37), who has stood out more for his performances on clay courts. However, the Spaniard is one who has made significant progress in his tennis over the past year, turning himself into a player to be considered even on hard courts. This time he was close to delivering a surprise against Bublik, although in the end the Kazakh claimed the victory 6-4, 6-7(4), 7-6(3).

In the first set, Munar’s lack of concentration at the start ended up costing him dearly as he conceded his first service game. From there Bublik tried to hold on to his serve for the remainder of the set, although it would not be too easy. From 4-2 onwards, the following four games had multiple break opportunities for both players, but neither managed to convert. After 44 minutes, Bublik secured a hard-fought first set 6-4, winning 73% of service points, compared to only 59% for Munar.

In the second set both stabilised on serve – and in fact it was Bublik who had to overcome some break chances against him. Munar, however, was unable to convert his opportunities and Bublik remained unscathed for the rest of the set, even saving a set point against him. Everything went to the tie-break, in which the Spaniard got his reward, winning the last four points consecutively to close the set 7-6(4).

The tension extended into the third set, after both began with exchanged breaks: Munar took the lead and Bublik responded immediately in the following game. Things remained level with both holding their service games without inconveniences. Munar saved a match point while serving at 5-6, 30-40, but managed to send everything to the tie-break. However, it was of little use, as Bublik raised his level at the right moment and ended up closing out the victory with a strong tie-break, 6-4, 6-7(4), 7-6(3). The Kazakh records his 200th tour-level win and will face Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semifinals.