Bastide Médical UTS Nîmes 2025 kicks off with record UTS crowds as semi-final line-up is set
Home crowd favourites Monfils and Humbert defeated in quarters
UTS Nimes (Image Credit: UTS)
A record UTS crowd of 8,000 fans packed the Arena de Nimes on Friday on the first day of the Bastide Médical UTS Nîmes 2025 to witness some high-octane tennis action against one of the most picturesque stadiums in recent history.
The UTS record of 8,000 fans is expected to be shattered on Saturday itself with 12,500 fans expected to attend the second day.
“It’s going to be one of the highlights of my life playing here,” Russia’s Andrey ‘Rublo’ Rublev said after his opening match. “I never in my life experienced something like that, even as a tourist. I’ve been many times in Rome but I’ve never been inside the Colosseum, so to be able not just to be inside something similar but to perform, it’s amazing.”
Frenchman Ugo ‘The Commander’ Humbert seconded that view. “It’s totally crazy, it’s the best court I’ve ever played on,” while Czech player Tomas Machac described it as “a lifetime experience”.
The semi-final line-up has also been set for Saturday with Alex ‘The Demon’ de Minaur, current UTS champion, taking on ‘The Air Machtte’ Machac, winner of the first stage of this season’s tour at Guadalajara while Rublev squaring off against Casper ‘The Ice Man’ Ruud.
De Minaur defeated Humbert 15-14, 13-12, 17-9 on Friday. De Minaur’s last appearance in UTS was at the London Grand Final in 2024 but the Aussie will be gunning for his first career title on clay. “We’ll see if this can be my first tournament on clay,” he said. “I’ll do my best to try and give myself that chance.”
Machac remains undefeated in the UTS series, improving to 6-0 on the circuit this year. He made his debut at UTS Guadalajara six weeks ago and went on to win the title. The Czech overcame French veteran and fan favourite Gael ‘Le Monf’ Monfils, 16-10, 8-19, 19-7, 18-10.
Rublev guns for third UTS title and meets Ruud in last four
Rublev, accompanied by his new coach, the former world No 1 Marat Safin, defeated Ben ‘The Mountain’ Shelton 18-11, 20-7, 11-14, 19-7 in another quarter-final clash on Friday.
Meanwhile, Ruud beat Australia’s Alexei ‘The Sniper’ Popyrin, a late replacement for the injured Holger Rune, 17-13, 20-6, 16-10. The semi-finals begin at 1pm local time on Saturday, with the first classification match – Popyrin versus Shelton – starting at 12 noon.
The quarter-finals:
- Rublev (N.3) d. Shelton : 18-11, 20-7, 11-14, 19-7
- De Minaur (N.4) d. Humbert : 15-14, 13-12, 17-9
- Ruud (N.2) d. Popyrin : 17-13, 20-6, 16-10
- Machac – Monfils : 16-10, 8-19, 19-7, 18-10.
Super Saturday schedule:
- 12 noon: Shelton v Popyrin
- 1pm: De Minaur (N.4) v Machac
- 2pm: Ruud (N.2) v Rublev (N.3)
- 3pm: Monfils v Humbert
- 4.15pm: Final
UTS FORMAT
- 4 quarters of 8 minutes each
- Less time (15 seconds) between points
- No second serve
- Unlimited coaching from the sidelines
- Player interviews between the quarters
- Strategic use of bonus cards by players
