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Joao Sousa and Emil Ruusuvuori will square off in the final of the Maharashtra Open in Pune on Sunday.
The 32-year-old from Portugal started his 2022 season at the Melbourne Summer Set 1 and was eliminated in the first round after losing to eventual runner-up Maxime Cressy. Following this, he entered the qualifying round of the Australian Open.
Sousa lost to Radu Albot in the third qualifying round but entered the main draw as a lucky loser following the withdrawal of Borna Coric. However, he lost in the opening round to 11th seed and eventual quarterfinalist Jannik Sinner.
Sousa then competed at the ATP Challenger tournament Open Quimper Bretagne and reached the quarterfinals after defeating Franco Agamenone and Constant Lestienne. However, he lost to Austria's Dennis Novak in the last eight.
The Portuguese is unseeded at the Maharashtra Open and won his opening match of the competition by defeating wildcard Arjun Kadhe. He then defeated third seed Gianluca Mager and fifth seed Daniel Altmaier to reach the semifinals.
Sousa came back from a set down to eliminate the in-form Elias Ymer and qualify for his 11th ATP final and his first since 2018.
In the final, Sousa takes on sixth seed Emil Ruusuvuori. The Finn started this year by reaching the semifinals of the Melbourne Summer Set 1, defeating Sebastian Baez, Jordan Thompson and Alex Molcan on the way. However, he lost to eventual champion Rafael Nadal in straight sets.
Ruusuvuori then competed at the Australian Open and was up against ninth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the first round. The 22-year-old was up by two sets to one but the Canadian won the next two sets to win the match.
The Finn entered the Maharashtra Open as the sixth seed and reached the semifinals of the tournament by defeating Egor Gerasimov, Vit Kopriva and reigning champion Jiri Vesely. He then defeated Kamil Majchrzak 6-3, 7-6 to reach his first ATP Final. Ruusuvuori is yet to drop a set in the tournament.
Maharashtra Open 2022: Final schedule on February 6
(6) Emil Ruusuvuori vs Joao Sousa at 5 30 pm local time/ 12 pm GMT/ 7 am EST at Mhalunge Balewadi Tennis Complex
Where to watch Maharashtra Open 2022
For viewers residing in the US, UK, India and Canada can catch all the action live on the following channels and sites:
USA: The final will be broadcast on the Tennis Channel
UK: The final will be broadcast in the UK on Amazon Prime Video
India: Indian fans can watch the final live on Star Sports, Disney Plus and JIO TV.
