Tennis world stunned by historic moment amid Miami Open chaos
Hubert Hurkacz has become the first Polish man to win a Masters 1000 title, beating Jannik Sinner to claim the Miami Open title.
Taking advantage of the absence of tennis' 'Big 3', Hurkacz broke through for his first Masters 1000 crown on Sunday.
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The 24-year-old won the biggest title of his career by beating 19-year-old Sinner of Italy 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 in the final.
Hurkacz improved to 10-0 in Florida this year, including the Delray Beach title in January, and climbs to a career-high 16th in the world rankings.
"I was super happy I was able to lift the biggest trophy of my life so far," Hurkacz said.
"I played some of the best tennis I ever played."
The match-up in the final was a surprise even though Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer skipped the tournament, as did reigning US Open champion Dominic Thiem.
The likes of Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev all failed to take advantage of the absence of the 'Big 3'.
"We knew that Rafa, Roger, Novak, Thiem were not playing," Sinner said.
"It was a big opportunity for many players."
Hubert Hurkacz makes incredible tennis history
But it was Hurkacz who took full advantage.
Along the way he eliminated Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev - the first time he has beaten two top-10 opponents in a tournament.
In doing so, Hurkacz also became Poland's first Masters 1000 champion.
"Hopefully with my game I can inspire some people in Poland," he said.
The 196cm Pole returned well against Sinner, breaking serve four times, and came to the net at key moments.
"To win against Jannik, you need to come up with some really good stuff," Hurkacz said.
"He's an amazing player and has an amazing future."
Sinner, appearing in just his third Masters 1000 tournament, served for the first set at 6-5 but was broken at love.
He then trailed 4-0 in the second set before it was Hurkacz's turn to wobble.
But he composed himself to hold his final two service games, and sealed the win after a 20-shot rally on championship point, with Sinner pushing a forehand wide.
The tournament also represented a leap forward for Sinner, Hurkacz's good friend and doubles partner.
The former junior skiing champion has improved his ranking from 78th at the start of last year to 23rd.
"You win or learn when you're 19 playing the final here," Sinner said.
"I was a little bit nervous from the beginning of the match, but it's normal because you really want to win."
Congrats Hubi, u played amazing and deserve the trophy 🏆💪🎾
— Eva Cichon (@evacichon) April 4, 2021
YESSSSS!!! Great achievement Hubi, I guess it wasn't easy to play against your friend, but you did it!!! Such amazing player!! 👏👏. Bravo Jannik, you gonna win it one day!
— Kate (@KatarzynaMadej) April 4, 2021
Wow! What a week it has been for @HubertHurkacz .... beating Shapovalo - Raonic - Tsitsipas - Rublev - Sinner ...pretty impressive ❤️
— Sandeep Grandhi (@SandeepGrandhi3) April 4, 2021
The first polish in history to win a master 1000. Sacred achievement
— Brice Carrara (@BriceCarrara) April 5, 2021
Hurkacz is going places. Insane movement for a tall guy
— Marcus Willis (@Willbomb90) April 4, 2021
with AAP
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