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In a match that lasted nearly four hours and finished at 2:15 am
local time, Tiafoe was spurred on by the home crowd after many
stayed behind to cheer every point won by the 23-year-old.
"You guys are the reason I got it done tonight. You guys stuck
with me all the way through," Tiafoe said in his on-court
interview.
"I love these matches... these are the matches I train for. I
came out here thinking 'I want to beat him'. Let's keep going."
After Rublev took the opening set on the back of a strong
service game, Tiafoe bounced back in the second to keep the
match evenly poised.
The American saved a set point in the third set tiebreak before
going 2-1 up and despite the sparse crowd still in attendance,
the roar was deafening.
Rublev regained his momentum in the fourth when, at 4-2 down, he
won four consecutive games to force a decider.
But Tiafoe found an extra reserve of energy in the fifth where
his forehands were faster and stronger, giving Rublev no chance
to settle down as the American quickly jumped into a 5-0 lead
before serving out the set.
"I've lost a lot of five-setters. I was just amped up... I
wasn't going to leave this court without winning tonight,"
Tiafoe, who finished with 69 winners and 23 aces, added.
Up next for Tiafoe is Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime, who beat
Roberto Bautista Agut 6-3 6-4 4-6 3-6 6-3.
"Felix is another great friend of mine, but I'm coming for him."
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Shri
Navaratnam)
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