Latest news with #Bublik
The Hindu
19 hours ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
Exploring why nobody wants to face Alexander Bublik on Wimbledon's grass courts
After losing to Alexander Bublik in the final of Halle, former World No. 1 and 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev paid his opponent the ultimate veiled compliment. Congratulating Bublik, Medvedev said, 'Keep playing like that, I hope you're in Carlos [Alcaraz's side of the] draw at Wimbledon. Please, Carlos or Jannik [Sinner's] side of the draw at Wimbledon!' It's a sentiment many others on the ATP Tour share. Bublik is a player other players don't fancy facing, but one they hope will take out a big name or two, thus clearing their own path. The 6'5' Bublik owns a monster serve, a punishing forehand and a dizzying array of drops, slices and trickshots. At his best, he can take the racquet out of his opponent's hand. But even at his worst — he is prone to ups and downs — he is a disarming, distracting handful. Expect the unexpected Indeed, Aleksandar Kovacevic, who defeated Bublik in Montpellier earlier this year, found himself confronted by a string of successful underarm serves at one stage and a bemused ball boy, who Bublik handed his racquet to, at another. 'I was not expecting to play against the ball kid, but you always know there's going to be something funny with him [Bublik],' Kovacevic said. 'It's not the first time he's having fun out here. It's not a bad thing. But for me, obviously, and for any opponent that he has, it's important to stay locked in and focus.' It's not Bublik's worst his rivals are fearing ahead of Wimbledon, however. The 28-year-old heads to London on the back of his best Major run and in possession of his second Halle title. ALSO READ | Wimbledon 2025 preview: Sinner, Djokovic plot to prevent Alcaraz hat-trick At Roland-Garros, Bublik made history, becoming the first male player representing Kazakhstan to enter the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam singles event. It was a remarkable performance for the quality of players he defeated but also for the fact that it came on clay, a surface that doesn't play to his strengths. 'I hate clay, I hope not to step on it for the next ten years,' he said before the tournament. 'I hope the clay-court season ends soon so I can play on grass.' But Bublik found his footing on Paris' red dirt to beat Alex de Minaur from two sets down and Jack Draper from a set down. Both were inspired victories. De Minaur, a particularly difficult man to put away because of his exceptional footspeed, was on a streak of four consecutive appearances in Major quarterfinals. Draper was the fifth seed on the back of a strong run during which he won the Indian Wells title and reached the Madrid Open final. Back on his favourite grass, Bublik showed just what a threat he can be on a fast, slippery surface. He became the first man not named Alcaraz to beat World No. 1 Sinner in 49 matches. He extracted a measure of revenge for the quarterfinal loss at Roland-Garros with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory. It was Bublik's second win over Sinner in six matches, both coming on Halle's grass. ALSO READ | New-look Wimbledon prepares for life without line judges Bublik saved three break points in the first game of the second set before gaining the crucial break to lead 4-2 and smashed three aces when holding serve to force the decider where a break to go 4-3 up proved decisive. 'It's a special one — I had never beaten the top one [No. 1] in the world, that's an accomplishment,' said Bublik, who struck 36 winners, including 15 aces. 'It's a very fast surface, so I had for certain a better chance than at Roland-Garros. I tried to be clutch. I just kept serving and putting him in uncomfortable positions. Tried to return as much as I could. Serve aces so the ball doesn't come back. It worked well.' New maturity Bublik continued to serve big and rip winners on his way to the final, where he had a mental obstacle to overcome. He had lost his six previous meetings against Medvedev, winning only one set in the process, but produced a superb exhibition of grass-court tennis to end that streak. So often the showman, Bublik showed his new maturity with a calm 6-3, 7-6(4) victory. 'I was cursed against you, Daniil,' he said in the post-match ceremony. 'From the mental point of view, that's the toughest match I ever played in my life. I have never beaten Daniil. He's a super tough player to play, especially with my gamestyle, and today everything clicked, mentally and physically. That's one of the wins of my career.' The Halle triumph certainly made many in the tennis world sit up and take notice. ALSO READ | Plotting the contours of the Alcaraz-Sinner rivalry: Men's tennis' new main-event Andy Roddick, a three-time runner-up at Wimbledon, likened Bublik's unconventional style to former World No. 8 Radek Stepanek's. Both players, he said, kept opponents off-balance on grass because they always carried the threat of rushing the net, 'except Bublik kind of hits the ball bigger'. Roddick also said Bublik is 'among the 10-15 best grass-court players if he is in form and engaged'. Three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker liked what he saw from Bublik in the Halle final, calling it 'great grass-court play' which made his heart 'beat a little faster'. Bublik will enter Wimbledon feeling completely different mentally to what he did a year ago. Ranked as high as No. 17 last June, he experienced a slump that left him outside the top-80. 'I had such tough months from last Wimbledon to probably this summer,' said Bublik, who climbed 15 places to World No. 30 after his Halle triumph. 'I was close to calling it quits after Wimbledon because I was not enjoying it. I dropped in the rankings and I didn't know why. I didn't want to play, I had no joy. Now this is happening. Quarters at the French. Winner here. It's beyond my wildest dreams of what I could achieve. It has been a big renaissance of my career.' Harnessing unorthodoxy In addition to rediscovering the joy of playing, Bublik has also found a way over the last month to extract the most from his unorthodox game. The key has been using his serve to platform his variety, touch and guile. As he said, 'On grass, if you lose your serve, it is maybe tough and I am a guy who doesn't lose a lot of serves. 'If Bublik can serve to potential and hold his nerve, he will be a threat on Wimbledon's lawns. He will know that he can improve on his round-of-16 appearance in 2023, but he isn't getting ahead of himself. 'Tennis is a brutal sport,' he said. 'When I was ranked 17th in the world, I started treating it like a job, a sport that was too demanding. But this isn't track and field, it's not a race against time. There's a ball, and you can do anything with it. That — you must never forget.'
![2025 Rothesay International Eastbourne: Bublik [30th] vs. Comesana [65th] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gannett-cdn.com%2Fauthoring%2Fimages%2FDataSkriveSportsbookWire%2F2025%2F04%2F16%2FSSBK%2F83117401007-16686351.jpeg%3Fauto%3Dwebp%26crop%3D1199%2C675%2Cx0%2Cy0%26format%3Dpjpg%26width%3D1200&w=3840&q=100)
![2025 Rothesay International Eastbourne: Bublik [30th] vs. Comesana [65th] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fall-logos-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fusatoday.com.png&w=48&q=75){kind=small}
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
2025 Rothesay International Eastbourne: Bublik [30th] vs. Comesana [65th] Prediction, Odds and Match Preview
In the Round of 32 at the Rothesay International Eastbourne on Tuesday, Francisco Comesana (ranked No. 65) meets Alexander Bublik (No. 30). Bublik is favored over Comesana for this match, with -350 odds compared to the underdog's +260. Tennis odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Monday at 2:36 PM ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub. Alexander Bublik vs. Francisco Comesana matchup info Watch the Tennis Channel and more sports on Fubo! Bublik vs. Comesana Prediction Based on the implied probility from the moneyline, Bublik has a 77.8% to win. Bublik vs. Comesana Betting Odds Bublik vs. Comesana matchup performance & stats
Observer
5 days ago
- Sport
- Observer
Bublik beats Medvedev to claim Halle title
HALLE, Germany: Kazakh Alexander Bublik achieved his first win in seven meetings with Russian Daniil Medvedev to claim his second title on the grass of Halle, a week before Wimbledon. Bublik, ranked 45, claimed the scalp of world number one Jannik Sinner in the second round. The 28-year-old maintained his streak with a 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), victory in one hour and 22 minutes in his first clash on grass with third seed Medvedev. Thanks to his second Halle trophy after 2023 and fifth ATP title overall, Bublik will move to 30th in Monday's ATP rankings, while Medvedev, who was playing in his first final in 15 months, will move to number nine. "I was cursed against you, Daniil. But today, I'm happy to have won. Beating you here is a great honour for me," Bublik said during the trophy presentation. In the first set, Bublik broke his opponent's serve to lead 5-3 and won the set on his serve. The Kazakh saved Medvedev's only break point, also a set point, at 4-5 in the second set, with a perfectly hit drop shot. He wrapped up the match in the tie-break with a service winner. "From the mental point of view, that's the toughest match I ever played in my life," said Bublik. "I have never beaten Daniil. He's a super tough player to play, especially with my gamestyle, and today everything clicked in mentally and physically. That's one of the wins of my career." Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik and runner-up Russia's Daniil Medvedev during the trophy presentation. — Reuters "I had such tough months since last Wimbledon to probably this summer," said Bublik, who had dropped out of the top 75 until last month and conceded he was "close to calling it quits after Wimbledon (last year), because I was not enjoying it anymore". Bublik's also won titles in Montpellier in 2022 and 2024 and Antwerp and Halle in 2023. "Alexander Bublik played some great grass court play today. My heart always beats a little faster when you play like that on grass," said 57-year-old German Boris Becker, a three-time Wimbledon champion (1985, 1986, 1989), before presenting the trophy. A former world number one in 2022, Medvedev lost his sixth consecutive final, his 20th and last title was the Masters 1000 on clay in Rome in May 2023. "Keep playing like that, and please, Carlos (Alcaraz)or Jannik in your draw at Wimbledon," joked former US Open winner Medvedev, a two-time Wimbledon semi-finalist. — AFP
New Indian Express
5 days ago
- Sport
- New Indian Express
Alexander Bublik beats Daniil Medvedev to win Halle Open again
HALLE: Alexander Bublik finally defeated Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 7-6 (4) on Sunday to win the Halle Open for the second time. It was his first win in seven matches with Medvedev. "Daniil, I've been cursed to play you forever and never won a set in my life, but today I'm happy to get through, and I wish you – you're a great champion – I wish you a lot of success," Bublik told his opponent afterward. "I mean, to win, to beat you here, it's a privilege for me." The Kazakhstan player, who also won the grass-court tournament in 2023, is just the third player to claim the title more than once after three-time winner Yevgeny Kafelnikov and 10-time champion Roger Federer. Bublik made a strong start and put together a 12-point winning streak in the first set. The second was not quite as fluid with five double-faults, but Medvedev produced consecutive backhand errors in the tiebreaker and Bublik seized his chance to wrap up the match in 81 minutes. Bublik, who defeated top-ranked Jannik Sinner in the second round, dedicated the title to his wife and son, who were absent because of illness. "This is for you, I know you're watching," he said. Medvedev, who saw off home favorite Alexander Zverev in the semifinals, was playing his first final since losing to Carlos Alcaraz at Indian Wells in March 2024. "A better week, maybe, than we expected but not the best feeling in the end," Medvedev said. "We try to do better next time."
New Straits Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Bublik sees off Medvedev to claim second title on grass in Halle
HALLE WESTFALEN: Kazakh Alexander Bublik achieved his first win in seven meetings with Russian Daniil Medvedev to claim his second title on the grass of Halle, a week before Wimbledon. Bublik, ranked 45, claimed the scalp of world number one Jannik Sinner in the second round. The 28-year-old maintained his streak with a 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), victory in one hour and 22 minutes in his first clash on grass with third seed Medvedev. Thanks to his second Halle trophy after 2023 and fifth ATP title overall, Bublik will move to 30th in Monday's ATP rankings, while Medvedev, who was playing in his first final in 15 months, will move to number nine. "I was cursed against you, Daniil. But today, I'm happy to have won. Beating you here is a great honour for me," Bublik said during the trophy presentation. In the first set, Bublik broke his opponent's serve to lead 5-3 and won the set on his serve. The Kazakh saved Medvedev's only break point, also a set point, at 4-5 in the second set, with a perfectly hit drop shot. He wrapped up the match in the tie-break with a service winner. "From the mental point of view, that's the toughest match I ever played in my life," said Bublik. "I have never beaten Daniil. He's a super tough player to play, especially with my gamestyle, and today everything clicked in mentally and physically. That's one of the wins of my career." "I had such tough months since last Wimbledon to probably this summer," said Bublik, who had dropped out of the top 75 until last month and conceded he was "close to calling it quits after Wimbledon (last year), because I was not enjoying it anymore". Bublik's also won titles in Montpellier in 2022 and 2024 and Antwerp and Halle in 2023. "Alexander Bublik played some great grass court play today. My heart always beats a little faster when you play like that on grass," said 57-year-old German Boris Becker, a three-time Wimbledon champion (1985, 1986, 1989), before presenting the trophy. A former world number one in 2022, Medvedev lost his sixth consecutive final, his 20th and last title was the Masters 1000 on clay in Rome in May 2023. "Keep playing like that, and please, Carlos (Alcaraz)or Jannik in your draw at Wimbledon," joked former US Open winner Medvedev, a two-time Wimbledon semi-finalist. - AFP
