Carlos Alcaraz had to dig deep against defending champion Andrey Rublev on Friday at the Qatar Open, but the top seed eventually sealed his place in the final after converting his sixth match point in a tense finish.
The World No. 1 claimed a 7-6(3), 6-4 victory in Doha, stretching his unbeaten run in 2026 to 11 matches. Although he failed to close out the opening set on two separate occasions and saw a 3-0 advantage slip in the second, Alcaraz kept his nerve in the key moments to book his first appearance in the Doha ATP 500 final after two hours and two minutes on court.
The win improved Alcaraz’s head-to-head record against Rublev to 5-1. In Saturday’s final, the Spaniard will take on France’s Arthur Fils as he chases the title.
Since capturing the Australian Open in January, becoming the youngest man to complete a Career Grand Slam, the 22-year-old has carried himself with assurance. Still, his campaign in Doha has tested his resolve. After battling past former champion Karen Khachanov in a three-set quarter-final, Alcaraz was again pushed to his limits by Rublev.
Carlos Alcaraz watched a 3-0 cushion disappear in the second set and squandered three match points while serving at 5-3, but he refused to let the momentum shift decisively. When Andrey Rublev threatened with one last surge and earned a break, Alcaraz responded immediately, breaking back without hesitation.
Maintaining his composure in the closing stages, the World No. 1 finally capitalised on his sixth match point to seal victory and advance to his 34th tour-level final. He now holds a 25-8 record in championship matches, ATP reports.
Earlier, Arthur Fils secured his place in the final by overcoming sixth seed Jakub Mensik 6-4, 7-5. The win sends the Frenchman into his first tour-level final since capturing the ATP 500 title in Tokyo in 2024.
Mensik, the reigning Miami champion who stunned World No. 2 Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals, was unable to reproduce that level against Fils. The 21-year-old is playing just his third tournament since returning from an eight-month layoff due to a back injury.
Although Mensik erased a break deficit in the second set to push it to a tie-break, Fils, a former World No. 14, held firm to close out the match in straight sets. The Frenchman has recently bolstered his coaching staff by adding Goran Ivanisevic, the 2001 Wimbledon champion, to his team.