Semi-finals set in front of record crowd at Bastide Médical UTS Nîmes 2025

The semi-finals are set at Bastide Médical UTS Nîmes 2025 after a thrilling first day of action in front of a record UTS crowd of 8,000 fans at Arena de Nimes amid a stunning backdrop of the legendary amphitheatre Les Arènes de Nîmes.

It’s a new record for UTS Tour, the disruptive tennis Tour launched by Patrick Mouratoglou – but a record that will be broken as soon as Saturday, with 12,500 people expected in this city located in the South of France.

“It’s going to be one of the highlights of my life playing there,” Russian player Andrey ‘Rublo’ Rublev said after the 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.”

“It’s totally crazy, it’s the best court I’ve ever played on,” said Frenchman Ugo ‘The Commander” Humbert as rising star Tomas Machac from Czech Republic described it as “a lifetime experience”.

In the semi-finals, Alex ‘The Demon’ de Minaur, current UTS champion, will play Tomas ‘The Air Machette’ Machac, winner of the first stage of this season’s tour at Guadalajara, as two incredible unbeaten streaks in the format will be on the line.

De Minaur’s last appearance in UTS was at the London Grand Final in 2024, when he lifted the Zeus trophy, inspired by a lightning bolt. De Minaur may have two titles on the UTS Tour, but he has never yet won a 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 is still undefeated at the UTS format with a 6-0 win/loss ratio this season. He made his debut at UTS Guadalajara, taking to the format with ease and winning the title there six weeks ago.

Coach Safin steers Rublev through

In the other semi-final, Andrey ‘Rublo’ Rublev will also be looking for a record third UTS title as he faces Casper ‘The Iceman’ Ruud. Rublev – with his new coach, former world No 1 Marat Safin, looking on – began Friday’s play with a solid win over Ben Shelton 18-11, 20-7, 11-14, 19-7.

De Minaur faced not just Ugo Humbert but a noisy home crowd. He came through 15-14, 13-12, 17-9 – getting an amazing 97 per cent of his serves in. Ruud took on Alexei Popyrin, a late replacement for the injured Holger Rune, and shone on his beloved clay, winning 17-13, 20-6, 16-10.

And Machac completed the day by upsetting the French fans once again, beating Gael Monfils, 16-10, 8-19, 19-7, 18-10. “He was a much better player than me,” Monfils said. “He’s not doing many mistakes and has an incredible defense. So, of course, a format like that with one serve will suit his game percentage.”

The semi-finals begin at 1 PM 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