Alexander Bublik’s ‘tennis is boring’ interview makes for compelling viewing
Alexander Bublik has never followed the conventions in tennis and he lived up to his billing in a wonderfully colourful interview following a 3-6 7-6(2) 6-4 win against Ben Shelton at the Madrid Open.
The Kazakhstani maverick is one of the great entertainers in tennis, but he has been accused of not making the most of his talents as his dedication to the sport has often been questioned by his critics.
Now Bublik is eyeing up his first ATP 1000 quarter-final appearance since 2021, after he booked a date with world No 4 Daniil Medvedev in the last-16 in Madrid.
As tends to be his way, Bublik was brutally honest in his interview with the Tennis Channel, as he admitted the 11am start for his match with Shelton was not to his liking.
“The key was just to wake up. An 11am start is pretty rough for me,” Bublik told Prakash Amritraj.
“It’s tough to work at 11. I woke up at 7; who wakes up at 7? When you’re a professional tennis player, top 20, you don’t need to wake up at 7. You can relax more in your life already.
“In the second set, I was definitely better returning. I was looking at my watch saying okay I have another 40 minutes so my body wakes up. Then I can start operating.”
Bublik’s ‘interview’ felt more like a comedy routine at times, with his dismissive comments about tennis likely to create some talking points, as he suggested the sport that has made him millions needs to be livened up.
“I always thought that tennis is very boring,” he continued.
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“I thought, okay, I imagine you paid the tickets, you go on Sunday instead of being with your family, drinking wine, you go see Sasha Bublik against (Borna) Coric and it’s like, 32 minutes, 6-1, 2-1. I’d be like, ‘Ok, do something, please! I paid 15,000 to watch you courtside!
“Not to be sarcastic here, but the most important thing is to be happy and enjoy what I do. The ranking will come up. If I’m destined to be in the Top 10, I will be one day. If not, it doesn’t really matter for me; I have other things to do.
“With me, you never know what’s going to happen. I won’t be sitting here, telling you, crushing my chest and saying I’ll be top 10 in two weeks, that I’m the best in the world.”
Bublik is at a career high in the tennis rankings, but it seems his desire for more success is not burning as brightly as it might do for most of his rivals.
“I don’t really care, to be honest with you,” added Bublik, when he was told he is now at a career high ranking.
“The most important thing is to be happy and enjoy what I do. Then the ranking will come up. If I’m destined to be in the top 10 one day, I will get there. If not it doesn’t matter to me. I might be No 72 in the world next year!”
Tennis fans may be missing the unpredictable contributions of Nick Kyrgois, but Bublik has always been a player who brings something very different to the table on and off the court.
The win against Shelton moved Bublik up to No 17 in the live ATP Rankings and if he continues to play with the brilliance he has shown on clay courts in Madrid, he will be a player to watch at the upcoming French Open.
