Alexander Bublik Books Title Match with Borna Coric in Montpelier

Alexander Bublik defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday to go to the Open Sud de France – Montpellier final, bringing him one victory away from winning his fourth tour-level championship.

Throughout the two hours and forty-nine minute match, the 26-year-old Bublik played with aggression, supporting his accurate serving with forceful ball striking to gain the upper hand when it mattered most.

Second-seeded Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan also maintained composure, coming back from a third-set break disadvantage to win on service on his second match point.

“I am happy to get through,” Bublik said. “Especially on indoor courts. I am happy to get through and I left it all out there. I will try to win it again tomorrow.”

With his sixth tour-level victory of the year, Bublik has tied Auger-Aliassime in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series at two games apiece. Bublik made it to the Adelaide semi-finals earlier in the season.

In the final on Sunday, he will play Borna Coric for his fourth tour-level victory and his second in Montpellier. Bublik won the championship in 2022 and has a 9-2 record at the ATP 250 event.

On indoor hard courts, Auger-Aliassime was attempting to win his tenth and fifteenth tour-level finals. In the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, the Canadian has moved up two spots to No. 28, with Bublik at No. 23.

Coric moved to his first tour-level championship match since 2022—the year he won his first ATP Masters 1000 title in Cincinnati—into the second semifinal on Saturday. When Holger Rune, the first seed, was forced to quit due to a right forearm injury, the Croatian took a 6-3, 4-1 lead.

After winning his first-ever Lexus ATP Head2Head match against Rune, Coric—who has yet to lose a set in Montpellier—is into his eighth tour-level final and, like Bublik, will attempt to win his fourth tour-level title on the side.

The fourth-seeded Croatian won 79 per cent (23/29) of his first-serve points and broke Rune’s serve four times before the match was halted after 59 minutes.