Hard-Court Hero: Rublev's Foundation For Success
Andrey Rublev soared from No. 23 to No. 8 in the FedEx ATP Rankings on the back of five ATP Tour titles in 2020, when he was named by his peers as the ATP Most Improved Player of the Year.
His breakthrough was centred on his hard-court performances last year, with an ATP Tour-leading 31 match wins on the surface — better than World No. 1 Novak Djokovic (30), Nitto ATP Finals champion Daniil Medvedev (28) and US Open finalist Alexander Zverev (25).
According to the Infosys ATP Performance Zone, Rublev had the third-best winning percentage on hard-courts (79.5%) over the past 52 weeks, behind only Djokovic (88.2%) and Gael Monfils (80%).
Best Winning % On Hard Courts In 2020
| Player | Win-Loss Record | Winning % |
| 1) Novak Djokovic | 30-4 | 88.2% |
| 2) Gael Monfils | 16-4 | 80% |
| 3) Andrey Rublev | 31-8 | 79.5% |
| 4) Daniil Medvedev | 28-8 | 77.8% |
| 5) Rafael Nadal | 18-6 | 75% |
Rublev opened the 2020 season with an 11-match winning streak on hard courts, including back-to-back ATP Tour titles in Doha (d. Moutet) and in Adelaide (d. Harris), making him the first player to win consecutive titles in the first two weeks of the season since Dominik Hrbaty in 2004. He compiled another 11-match winning streak on the surface in October with titles in St. Petersburg (d. Coric) and Vienna (d. Sonego).
It was quite the turnaround for Rublev, who saw his career winning percentage on hard courts skyrocket from the start of 2020 thanks to his 31-8 record (79.5%). Remarkably, the Russian compiled a 72-60 career record (54.5%) on the surface between 2014 and 2019.
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With growing confidence, Rublev has captured five of his seven ATP Tour titles on hard courts, and since 2014 he has won four times as many matches on hard courts (103) than he has on clay courts (25). Last year, the 23-year-old went 10-2 on clay — including the Hamburg European Open title (d. Tsitsipas) — for an overall 41-10 season record (80.3%).
The World No. 8 has recorded 103 of his 132 career match wins on hard courts. Next month, he will begin his 2021 campaign alongside Daniil Medvedev, when they both represent Russia in the ATP Cup.
Rublev’s Career Win-Loss Record By Surface
| Surface | Win-Loss Record / % | Titles |
| Hard | 103-68 / 60.2% | 5 |
| Clay | 25-18 / 58.1% | 2 |
| Grass | 4-3 / 57.1% | 0 |
| Total | 132-89 / 59.7% | 7 |