Five Things To Know About Alexander Bublik

With an entertaining brand of tennis, 22-year-old Alexander Bublik has reached two ATP Tour finals and a career-high No. 47 in the FedEx ATP Rankings.

ATPTour.com looks at five things you should know about the Kazakhstani.

1) He Raised His Game In 2019
Last year, Bublik advanced to his first two ATP Tour finals in Newport and Chengdu. On the grass courts of the Hall of Fame Open, the Kazakhstani navigated four consecutive three-set matches to reach his maiden ATP Tour championship match and improve to 9-1 in deciding sets at tour-level. Bublik was unable to take the title, losing in straight sets to four-time Newport winner John Isner.

It didn’t take long for Bublik to return to a championship match. Two months later, at the Chengdu Open, the 22-year-old earned Top 30 victories against Taylor Fritz and Grigor Dimitrov en route to the final. Bublik fired 125 aces in Chengdu, but fell just short of the trophy after losing a final-set tie-break against Pablo Carreno Busta.

2) He Is Unpredictable
When you step onto the court against Bublik, anything can happen. From tweeners to extended net exchanges, the Kazakhstani has already made a name for himself with his entertaining game style.

En route to the Chengdu Open final, Bublik contested a thrilling rally with Fritz after hitting an underarm serve. Following the point, the players shared a laugh near the umpire’s chair.

3) Less Counting = More Winning
Prior to reaching his first final in Newport, Bublik revealed that he had changed his outlook on the FedEx ATP Rankings. Less counting, more winning.

The 22-year-old admitted that counting points and paying too much attention to how close he was to the ranking cutoff of a big tournament had previously had a negative effect on his performance, so he decided to make a change.

“This was my problem when I was a kid. I was counting the points. Even if I didn’t win the match, before the match I started counting points, how much I’d earn,” said Bublik. “This was my problem. I deleted all the apps, the live scoring, rankings. Especially when there’s a deadline week and I needed to make something and I’d be like ‘Yes, I need to do it,’ I’d choke 0 and 1.”

4) He Reached A Career-High In February
He may not be counting, but Bublik achieved a career-high FedEx ATP Ranking in February. The 6’6” right-hander earned three consecutive victories at the Open 13 Provence in Marseille, beating Marton Fucsovics in straight sets before back-to-back three-set wins against Top 25 stars Benoit Paire and Denis Shapovalov. Despite falling to eventual champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semi-finals, Bublik climbed eight positions to a career-high World No. 47.

5) He Has Tricks In His Locker
Bublik’s tricks are not limited to the court. The two-time ATP Tour finalist is just as impressive with his freestyle tennis skills.

At the 2019 US Open, Bublik took time out of his schedule to teach fans some of his favourite moves. After setting a challenge for one fan, he offered his new shoes as a prize. Fortunately, for Bublik at least, the fan fell just short of the mark.

“One guy challenged me for my shoes,” said Bublik. “[I was hoping] he didn’t make it because I love these shoes.”