Emil Ruusuvuori lost the ATP tournament final for the second time in his career.
Emil Ruusuvuori lost to Russia in the final of the Hong Kong ATP 250 tournament To Andrei Rublev. Rublev won the match 6–4, 6–4. The ATP final loss was the second in Ruusuvuori’s career.
After the match, in the on-field interview, Ruusuvuori shared recognition with his rival.
– You are one of the hardest working and toughest competitors, but still one of the nicest people on the tour, so you really deserve this win with your team. Our struggles continue, Ruusuvuori referred to the two’s face-to-face encounters.
There was only one pass break in the opening set, when Rublev broke Ruusuvuori’s pass in a 3-3 situation. The Finn served two double faults, which Rublev ruthlessly exploited. Otherwise, Ruusuvuori played strongly throughout the opening set against the Russian star ranked fifth in the world rankings.
Ruusuvuori gathered itself after the serving loss and got a break point when Rublev served in the situation 5–4. However, the 26-year-old Rublev held his serve and took the set.
At the beginning of the second set, both held their serve convincingly and the set progressed quickly to a 3-3 situation. Rublev was able to put pressure on the Finn in the next two Ruusuvuuori serving shifts, and finally took a 5–4 lead with a pass break. The hard-hitting Rublev held his last serve convincingly and got to celebrate the fifteenth tournament victory of his career.
After the match, Ruusuvuori praised his supporters.
– Most importantly, thanks to my team here and at home. The work you do means a lot to me. This is a great way to start the year, Ruusuvuori reflects on the second place he achieved.
The strong tournament in Hong Kong is good for Ruusuvuori’s ranking in the ATP world rankings. The 24-year-old Finn will move up from his 69th place. At the end of his interview, the Finn thanked the tournament organizers.
– I enjoy playing here. The atmosphere was great and everything was handled really well. We players could only focus on playing.