Alexander Bublik
![]() Bublik at the 2019 Wimbledon Championships | |
Full name | Alexander Stanislavovich Bublik |
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Country (sports) | ![]() ![]() |
Residence | Sestroretsk, Russia |
Born | Gatchina, Russia | 17 June 1997
Height | 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) |
Turned pro | 2016 |
Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
Coach | Stanislav Bublik, Artem Suprunov |
Prize money | $2,398,478 |
Singles | |
Career record | 63–63 (50.0%) |
Career titles | 0 |
Highest ranking | No. 37 (24 May 2021) |
Current ranking | No. 38 (18 Aug 2021) |
Grand Slam Singles results | |
Australian Open | 2R (2017, 2021) |
French Open | 2R (2019, 2020) |
Wimbledon | 3R (2021) |
US Open | 3R (2019) |
Other tournaments | |
Olympic Games | 1R (2021) |
Doubles | |
Career record | 18–28 (39.1%) (at ATP Tour level, Grand Slam level, and in Davis Cup) |
Career titles | 0 |
Highest ranking | No. 49 (14 June 2021) |
Current ranking | No. 49 (14 June 2021) |
Grand Slam Doubles results | |
Australian Open | SF (2020) |
French Open | F (2021) |
Wimbledon | 2R (2019) |
US Open | 1R (2019) |
Other doubles tournaments | |
Olympic Games | 1R (2021) |
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results | |
Australian Open | 1R (2021) |
Wimbledon | 1R (2021) |
Last updated on: 14 June 2021. |
Alexander Stanislavovich Bublik (Russian: Александр Станиславович Бублик; born 17 June 1997) is a Kazakhstani professional tennis player. He has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 37, achieved on 24 May 2021 and a doubles ranking of world No. 49, achieved on 14 June 2021. In 2021, he reached the French Open men's doubles final with fellow Kazakhstani Andrey Golubev. Before 2016, he played for his country of birth, Russia.[1] Bublik is known for his powerful serve, his use of underarm serves, and his trick shots.
Career[]
Bublik was born in Gatchina and started playing tennis at the age of four. He was coached by his father Stanislav Bublik. On the junior tour, Bublik had a career-high ranking of No. 19. Bublik has won four ITF singles titles and three ITF doubles titles.
In 2016, Bublik joined several other players by switching to playing for Kazakhstan, explaining:
As hurtful as it may sound, nobody cared about me in Russia. And now people care about me. And they do everything for my career to be successful. That's the most important thing! Tennis Federation of Kazakhstan — they really look after me. They help, work, create the conditions for me to play well. It was impossible in Russia. There is also a wonderful tennis center in Astana. I don’t know how to describe it in words. But it's awesome. Since we have already made a decision to play for Kazakhstan, I am never going back to the Russian team. I am not going back.[2]
He has publicly stated he hates tennis and only plays for the money: "If there was no money, I would stop playing tennis instantly. I haven’t earned enough money, in any other case I would have already retired".[3]
2016: Futures titles and first ATP wins[]
Bublik began 2016 ranked World No. 964. He won his first Futures title in Doha in April 2016, followed by titles in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Sweden.[4]
Bublik made his ATP main-draw debut at the 2016 St. Petersburg Open, where he received wildcards into both the singles and doubles main draw.
Bublik qualified for the Kremlin Cup, where he notched the biggest win of his career, upsetting the top seed and world No. 13 Roberto Bautista Agut in straight sets in the round of 16. He then lost a tight three-set match to the eventual champion Pablo Carreño Busta.[5]
In November 2016, Bublik announced that he would represent Kazakhstan.[6]
By the end of the year, Bublik's ranking had skyrocketed 759 places to No. 205.
2017: Two Challenger titles and top-100 breakthrough[]
After qualifying for the Australian Open, Bublik defeated 16th-seeded Lucas Pouille in his first Grand Slam match.[7]
In February, Bublik won his first Challenger title at the Morelos Open, defeating Nicolas Jarry in the final.[8]
At Wimbledon, Bublik received a spot in the main draw as a lucky loser. He was defeated by world No. 1 Andy Murray in his first Wimbledon appearance.[9]
Bublik won his second Challenger title in Aptos.[10] In September, after making the semifinals of a Challenger tournament in Istanbul,[11] Bublik broke into the top 100 for the first time, reaching a career-high ranking of No. 95.[12]
2018: Struggles with form[]
Bublik struggled for much of the 2018 season, seeing his ranking drop into the 200s. However, he prevailed in his last event of the year, winning eight matches to capture the Challenger title in Bratislava.[13]
2019: Two ATP Finals, Top 50 debut[]
Bublik was successful early on in 2019, winning his fourth Challenger title in Budapest,[14] followed shortly by another title at Pau.[15]
Bublik earned his first Masters 1000 win in Miami, winning two qualifying matches and defeating Tennys Sandgren in a third-set tiebreak.
His next tournament was in Monterrey, where he again defeated Sandgren in a third-set tiebreak en route to his sixth Challenger title.[16] This win propelled Bublik back into the top 100.
Bublik won his first Roland Garros main-draw match over Rudolf Molleker, before losing a close four-set contest to eventual finalist Dominic Thiem.[17]
At the tournament in Newport, Bublik reached his first ATP 250 final, where he was defeated by the top seed John Isner.[18]
Bublik had a successful US Open campaign, where he won two consecutive five-set matches. He came back from two sets to love down against Thomas Fabbiano to reach his first Grand Slam third round.[19]
Bublik reached his second ATP 250 final of the season in Chengdu, where he defeated top-30 players Taylor Fritz and Grigor Dimitrov, before losing the final in a third-set tiebreak to Pablo Carreño Busta.[20] The result helped him to reach a new career-high of No. 48 in November.[21]
2020: First Grand Slam doubles semifinal, First Top 10 singles win[]
At the 2020 Australian Open Bublik reached his first semifinal at a Grand Slam in doubles partnering fellow Kazakh Mikhail Kukushkin where they lost to Rajeev Ram/Joe Salisbury.
Bublik reached the semifinals of Marseille, where he lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets. As a Lucky Loser, Bublik reached the quarterfinals of Hamburg, beating Albert Ramos-Viñolas and Félix Auger-Aliassime, before losing to Cristian Garín in 3 sets.
He had his first top 10 victory against Gaël Monfils at the 2020 French Open, but lost to Lorenzo Sonego in the second round.
2021: Two more ATP finals, two Masters quarterfinals, Top 40 singles debut, French Open doubles final, Top 50 in doubles[]
Bublik started his year in Antalya, where he reached his third ATP 250 final, notching his second top 10 victory against Matteo Berrettini in straight sets. He was forced to retire in the final after trailing 0-2 in the first set against Alex De Minaur.
In the Great Ocean Road Open, he lost in the third round to Stefano Travaglia. At the Australian Open, he lost in the second round to Dušan Lajović in 4 sets.
He reached his fourth final in Singapore after beating Altuğ Çelikbilek, Yoshihito Nishioka and Radu Albot. He lost to Alexei Popyrin in the final, 6-4 0-6, 2-6.
At the 2021 Miami Open, Bublik reached the quarterfinals where he lost to Jannik Sinner. This marked his best result at a Masters 1000 event to date.
At the 2021 Madrid Open, he defeated Denis Shapovalov and Aslan Karatsev to equal his previous Masters 1000 result, but lost to Casper Ruud. As a result, he achieved his career-high ranking of World No. 40 on 10 May 2021.
In only his sixth appearance at a Grand Slam in doubles, Bublik reached his second Grand Slam doubles semifinal in his career at the 2021 French Open partnering with fellow Kazakh Andrey Golubev defeating No. 5 seeded Ivan Dodig/Filip Polášek (second round), No. 11 seeded Wesley Koolhof/Jean-Julien Rojer (third round) and Hugo Nys/Tim Pütz (quarterfinals) en route, his best showing at this Grand Slam.[22] In the semifinal the Kazakh duo defeated the Spanish duo Pablo Andujar/Pedro Martinez[23] who were both making their Grand Slam semifinals doubles debut.[24] They played in the final against the French home favorites Nicolas Mahut/Pierre-Hugues Herbert,[25] but they lost 6−4, 6−7, 4−6. As a result, he entered the top 50 in doubles at World No. 49 on 14 June 2021.
International competition[]
Bublik has been selected to the Kazakhstan Davis Cup team and has a win/loss record of 4–1 in singles and 1–1 in doubles in Davis Cup competition.[26] He made his debut at the 2019 Davis Cup Qualifying Round against João Sousa of Portugal.
Bublik participated in the 2019 Davis Cup Finals. In his first match, he narrowly lost to Robin Haase of the Netherlands, but he teamed up with Mikhail Kukushkin to win the deciding doubles match. In his second singles match, he defeated Dan Evans of Great Britain, but lost his doubles match with Kukushkin.[27]
Playing style[]
Bublik's playing style is similar to the style of Gaël Monfils and Dustin Brown. He’s known for his very fast serve along with powerful forehands and backhands. Bublik, like Nick Kyrgios, is also known for his underarm serve and for playing trick shots during his matches.
Significant finals[]
Grand Slam tournament finals[]
Doubles: 1 (1 runner-up)[]
Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 2021 | French Open | Clay | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–4, 6–7(1–7), 4–6 |
ATP career finals[]
Singles: 4 (4 runners-up)[]
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Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 0–1 | Jul 2019 | Hall of Fame Open, USA | 250 Series | Grass | ![]() |
6–7(2–7), 3–6 |
Loss | 0–2 | Sep 2019 | Chengdu Open, China | 250 Series | Hard | ![]() |
7–6(7–5), 4–6, 6–7(3–7) |
Loss | 0–3 | Jan 2021 | Antalya Open, Turkey | 250 Series | Hard | ![]() |
0–2 ret. |
Loss | 0–4 | Feb 2021 | Singapore Open, Singapore | 250 Series | Hard (i) | ![]() |
6–4, 0–6, 2–6 |
Doubles: 1 (1 runner-up)[]
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Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 0–1 | Jun 2021 | French Open, France | Grand Slam | Clay | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–4, 6–7(1–7), 4–6 |
Challenger and Futures finals[]
Singles: 11 (10 titles, 1 runner-up)[]
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|
Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Win | 1–0 | Apr 2016 | Qatar F2, Doha | Futures | Hard | ![]() |
7–6(7–4), 7–6(9–7) |
Loss | 1–1 | Apr 2016 | Qatar F3, Doha | Futures | Hard | ![]() |
0–6, 6–4, 2–6 |
Win | 2–1 | Jun 2016 | Russia F1, Moscow | Futures | Clay | ![]() |
6–3, 7–6(7–5) |
Win | 3–1 | Sep 2016 | Russia F8, Saint Petersburg | Futures | Hard (i) | ![]() |
6–3, 7–5 |
Win | 4–1 | Oct 2016 | Sweden F5, Falun | Futures | Hard (i) | ![]() |
6–4, 6–4 |
Win | 5–1 | Feb 2017 | Morelos, Mexico | Challenger | Hard | ![]() |
7–6(7–5), 6–4 |
Win | 6–1 | Aug 2017 | Aptos, USA | Challenger | Hard | ![]() |
6–2, 6–3 |
Win | 7–1 | Nov 2018 | Bratislava, Slovakia | Challenger | Hard (i) | ![]() |
6–4, 6–4 |
Win | 8–1 | Feb 2019 | Budapest, Hungary | Challenger | Hard (i) | ![]() |
6–0, 6–3 |
Win | 9–1 | Mar 2019 | Pau, France | Challenger | Hard (i) | ![]() |
5–7, 6–3, 6–3 |
Win | 10–1 | Apr 2019 | Monterrey, Mexico | Challenger | Hard | ![]() |
6–3, 6–2 |
Doubles: 7 (3 titles, 4 runners-up)[]
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Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Loss | 0–1 | Aug 2014 | Russia F6, Kazan | Futures | Clay | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
1–6, 3–6 |
Win | 1–1 | Sep 2014 | Russia F10, Vsevolozhsk | Futures | Clay | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–3, 3–6, [11–9] |
Win | 2–1 | Nov 2014 | Estonia F4, Tallinn | Futures | Hard (i) | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–4, 6–7(5–7), [10–1] |
Loss | 2–2 | Sep 2015 | Russia F7, Vsevolozhsk | Futures | Clay | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
2–6, 6–7(3–7) |
Win | 3–2 | Nov 2015 | Turkey F43, Antalya | Futures | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
3–6, 6–4, [10–8] |
Loss | 3–3 | Jan 2016 | Germany F2, Kaarst | Futures | Carpet (i) | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
7–6(7–2), 4–6, [7–10] |
Loss | 3–4 | Aug 2018 | Jinan, China, P.R. | Challenger | Hard | ![]() |
![]() ![]() |
6–7(5–7), 6–4, [5–10] |
Performance timelines[]
W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | P# | DNQ | A | Z# | PO | G | F-S | SF-B | NMS | P | NH |
Singles[]
Current through the 2021 Winston-Salem Open.
Tournament | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | SR | W–L | Win % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grand Slam tournaments | |||||||||
Australian Open | A | 2R | Q2 | Q1 | 1R | 2R | 0 / 3 | 2–3 | 40% |
French Open | A | Q3 | Q1 | 2R | 2R | 1R | 0 / 3 | 2–3 | 40% |
Wimbledon | A | 1R | Q2 | 1R | NH | 3R | 0 / 3 | 2–3 | 40% |
US Open | A | Q1 | A | 3R | 1R | 0 / 2 | 2–2 | 50% | |
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 3–3 | 1–3 | 3–3 | 0 / 11 | 8–11 | 42% |
National representation | |||||||||
Summer Olympics | A | Not Held | 1R | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | 0% | |||
Davis Cup | A | A | A | RR | QR | 0 / 1 | 4–1 | 80% | |
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0 / 2 | 4–2 | 67% |
ATP Tour Masters 1000 | |||||||||
Indian Wells Masters | A | Q2 | Q2 | A | NH | 0 / 0 | 0–0 | – | |
Miami Open | A | Q1 | A | 2R | NH | QF | 0 / 2 | 4–2 | 67% |
Monte-Carlo Masters | A | A | A | A | NH | 1R | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | 0% |
Madrid Open | A | A | A | A | NH | QF | 0 / 1 | 3–1 | 75% |
Italian Open | A | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 0 / 2 | 0–2 | 0% |
Canadian Open | A | A | A | Q1 | NH | 2R | 0 / 1 | 1–1 | 50% |
Cincinnati Masters | A | A | A | Q1 | 1R | 2R | 0 / 2 | 1–2 | 33% |
Shanghai Masters | A | A | A | 1R | NH | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | 0% | |
Paris Masters | A | A | A | Q1 | 1R | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | 0% | |
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 8–6 | 0 / 11 | 9–11 | 45% |
Career statistics | |||||||||
2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | Career | |||
Tournaments | 2 | 3 | 4 | 14 | 16 | 23 | 62 | ||
Titles / Finals | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 0 | 0 / 2 | 0 / 4 | ||
Win–Loss | 2–2 | 3–3 | 1–4 | 15–15 | 14–16 | 28–23 | 63–63 | ||
Win (%) | 50% | 50% | 20% | 50% | 47% | 55% | 50% | ||
Year-end ranking | 205 | 117 | 162 | 56 | 50 | $ 2,642,380 |
Doubles[]
Tournament | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | W–L |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grand Slam tournaments | |||||||
Australian Open | A | A | A | A | SF | 3R | 6–2 |
French Open | A | A | A | A | 1R | F | 5–2 |
Wimbledon | A | A | A | 2R | NH | 1R | 1–2 |
US Open | A | A | A | 1R | A | 0–1 | |
Win–Loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 4–2 | 7–3 | 12–7 |
Record against other players[]
Record against top-10 players[]
Bublik's match record against those who have been ranked in the top 10, with those who have been No. 1 in boldface
Denis Shapovalov 2–0
Grigor Dimitrov 2–1
Matteo Berrettini 1–0
Gaël Monfils 1–0
Lucas Pouille 1–0
Alexander Zverev 1–0
Roberto Bautista Agut 1–1
Kevin Anderson 0–1
David Goffin 0–1
John Isner 0–1
Karen Khachanov 0–1
Andy Murray 0–1
Kei Nishikori 0–1
Milos Raonic 0–1
Diego Schwartzman 0–1
Dominic Thiem 0–1
Pablo Carreño Busta 0–2
Marin Čilić 0–2
Stefanos Tsitsipas 0–2
Andrey Rublev 0–3
Daniil Medvedev 0–4
- :* As of 18 August 2021
Top-10 wins[]
- He has a 3–8 (27.3%) record against players who were, at the time the match was played, ranked in the top 10.
Season | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
# | Player | Rank | Event | Surface | Round | Score | AB Rank |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020 | |||||||
1. | ![]() |
9 | French Open, France | Clay | 1R | 6–4, 7–5, 3–6, 6–3 | 49 |
2021 | |||||||
2. | ![]() |
10 | Antalya, Turkey | Hard | QF | 7–6(8–6), 6–4 | 49 |
3. | ![]() |
7 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | Hard (i) | 1R | 7–5, 6–3 | 43 |
- :* As of 24 July 2021
References[]
- ^ "Wimbledon: Alexander (Sasha) Bublik, 10 things you need to know about Andy Murray's first round opponent". Retrieved 3 March 2021.
- ^ "Бублик признался в ненависти к теннису. Зачем он вообще выходит на корт?" [Bublik confessed his hatred towards tennis. Why does he keep going on a court at all?]. championat.com. Championat. 23 February 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
- ^ lovetennis (February 21, 2020). "Alexander Bublik "I Hate Tennis With All My Heart" - Tennis News". Love Tennis. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- ^ "Alexander Bublik | Player Activity | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2018-05-14, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ "When money comes first: Sasha Bublik becomes a Kazakhstan player". Tennis World USA. 22 November 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-08-02, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-08-18, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-12-07, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-08-19, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2018-05-14, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ "Alexander Bublik | Rankings History | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-07-23, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-09-14, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-11-03, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-04-08, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-11-23, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-08-19, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-12-03, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-11-03, retrieved 2020-01-14
- ^ "Alexander Bublik | Rankings History | ATP Tour | Tennis". ATP Tour. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
- ^ https://www.atptour.com/en/news/andujar-martinez-roland-garros-2021-doubles
- ^ https://www.atptour.com/en/news/herbert-mahut-roland-garros-2021-doubles-sf
- ^ https://sportsfinding.com/roland-garros-martinez-and-andujar-are-left-out-of-the-doubles-final/100402/
- ^ https://www.rolandgarros.com/en-us/article/rg2021-the-bublik-golubev-show-moves-on-to-doubles-final
- ^ "Teams Announced for 2019 Davis Cup Qualifiers". 22 January 2019.
- ^ , Wikipedia, 2019-11-26, retrieved 2020-01-14
External links[]
- 1997 births
- Living people
- Russian male tennis players
- Kazakhstani male tennis players
- Russian emigrants to Kazakhstan
- Naturalised tennis players of Kazakhstan
- People from Gatchina
- Asian Games silver medalists for Kazakhstan
- Tennis players at the 2018 Asian Games
- Medalists at the 2018 Asian Games
- Asian Games medalists in tennis
- Olympic tennis players of Kazakhstan
- Tennis players at the 2020 Summer Olympics