Things are starting to get serious at the Erste Bank Open. On Saturday the semi finals are on tab. In the first one, Thiem menace Andrey Rublev (RUS/ATP 8) and Kevin Anderson (RSA) will meet in a duel of shooting star against veteran.
The 23-year old Rublev has already won four tournaments this year. Thiem, even before his loss in the quarter finals, called him “one of the five best players right now”. After wins in Doha, Adelaide, Hamburga and lately home turf of St. Petersburg, the neo top 10 player now aims for the Vienna title.
A title, which his opponent already claimed in 2018, when the 34-year old Kevin Anderson beat Japan’s Kei Nishikori in the Vienna final to crown himself Erste Bank Open champion. After a longer injury break it seems as if Vienna could do wonders for Anderson’s comeback. Wins against top players like Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP) and Daniil Medvedev (RUS) should be just the right thing to boost the South Africans confidence.
