Cincinnati Masters 2019: 6 major talking points from the tournament

#5 Bautista Agut makes top ten debut with Cincinnati quarterfinal run

Roberto Bautista Agut

Roberto Bautista Agut, on the cusp of the top ten for a while, sealed a maiden top ten entry by beating American Frances Tiafoe in the third round en route to a second Masters quarterfinal in as many weeks.

The Spaniard, however, failed to reach his first Cincinnati semifinal when he went down to Frenchman Richard Gasquet in a three-set last-eight clash.

#6 Rublev knocks out seven-time champion Federer

Andrey Rublev

Andrey Rublev, who almost missed the 2019 Cincinnati Masters as he 'forgot to sign up' for the tournament, moved through the qualifiers to make it to the main draw. The Russian beat successive seeded players in Nikoloz Basilashvili and Stanislas Wawrinka to seal a third-round meeting with Roger Federer.

In his first career meeting with the record seven-time Cincinnati champion, Rublev burst out of the blocks, breaking the Federer serve thrice to hand the Swiss his quickest defeat on tour in 15 years.

The defeat marked Federer's earliest Cincinnati exit in 11 years since a third set tiebreak reverse against Ivo Karlovic in the same round at the 2008 edition of the tournament.

About the author

Bhargav is a veteran sports journalist and editor at Sportskeeda, with a rich professional experience of 17 years, working for the likes of Siemens and Bombay Dyeing. An avid football and tennis follower for over three decades, Bhargav uses his vast knowledge and experience, attention to detail, an unbiased yet interesting writing style, and thorough research to craft insightful articles, which have raked in over 18 million reads so far.

Bhargav supports Italy at national level, a team steeped in tradition and history according to him. He still harbors the heartbreak from the Azzurri’s 1994 FIFA World Cup final defeat against Brazil, and protagonist-turned-antagonist from the game, ‘Divine Ponytail’ Roberto Baggio is his all-time favorite player. His favorite manager is Marcelo Lippi, who ended Italy’s 24-year wait for the World Cup trophy, winning it in 2006.

Outside Europe’s top five leagues, he follows the MLS following Lionel Messi’s move in 2023 but favors Cristiano Ronaldo in the G.O.A.T. debate. During his free time, Bhargav enjoys driving off to new places and singing.

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Edited by Arvind Sriram