Dubai Tennis Championships: Ugo Humbert beats Alexander Bublik for sixth win in as many finals on ATP Tour

Ugo Humbert beat Alexander Bublik in straight sets at the Dubai Tennis Championships to claim the second ATP 500 title of his career and extend his flawless record in finals to 6-0.

Humbert, who defeated Andy Murray in the second round, overcame Bublik 6-4 6-3 as he added the trophy to the ATP 500 title he lifted at the Halle Open in June 2021 when he beat Andrey Rublev.

Ernests Gulbis and Martin Klizan are the only other players in the Open Era to have won each of their first six Tour-level finals, before they subsequently lost their seventh.

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Frenchman Humbert edged a tight opening set on Saturday when Kazakhstan's Bublik double-faulted in the 10th game, before earning a 3-1 lead in the second set as Bublik hit the net.

The fifth seed fired in a monster forehand to move 5-2 up before holding his nerve two games later, saving a break point and then closing out the contest on his second championship point.

Humbert, who defeated world No 4 Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals, will rise to a career-high No 14 in the rankings on Monday and become the first Frenchman inside the top 15 since Gael Monfils in May 2021.

Asked about his record in finals, Humbert said: "I really don't know, but I have a good statistic. I have a really good team around me.

"For sure I was a bit stressed (in the final game). It was a little bit tight two or three points but I knew that it would be normal and was ready to suffer. I managed to play well in the last point."

Bublik, like Humbert, was looking to secure his second ATP 500 crown, having conquered Rublev to claim his first in Halle last summer.

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Rublev was Bublik's opponent in Friday's semi-final in Dubai but missed out on the final after being disqualified for screaming at a line judge while 6-5 down in the deciding set.

The Russian subsequently lost all of his prize money and ranking points for the week and will now drop out of the world's top five.

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