Top seed Hurkacz into Open 13 final after downing Bublik

Top seed Hubert Hurkacz saw off a spirited Alexander Bublik in straight sets to seal his place in the final of the Open 13 Provence with a 6-4 7-6 (7-4) win.

The world number 11 wrapped up victory in his semi-final in Marseille without being taken to a deciding third set for the first time during his tournament run.

But he was still forced to fight for the result, after unseeded Kazakhstani Bublik pushed him hard in their encounter.

Hurkacz only broke serve once during the first set and had to hold his nerve in a second-set tie-break to finish the job.

He will face a homegrown opponent in Benjamin Bonzi in the final, after the latter won an all-French last-four encounter with wild card Arthur Fils.

The former saw off his fellow countryman 6-4 6-4 in a straight-sets triumph of his own.

Les résultats de ce SamediHubert Hurkacz def. Alexander Bublik 6-4 7-6Benjamin Bonzi def. Arthur Fils 6-4 6-4Santiago Gonzalez & Edouard Roger-Vasselin def. N.Sriram Balaji & Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan def. 4-6 7-5 10-7#open13provence
— Open 13 Provence (@Open13) February 25, 2023