"There are few experiences on the professional tennis circuit more uncomfortable than being Alexander Bublik's opponent. The task of deciphering one of the more talented and unpredictable players is challenging enough, but there is also the risk of being on the receiving end of a few stinging insults. Over the years, Bublik has become notorious among Russian-speaking fans for his scathing rants about his rivals."
"This subject elicits little more than a shrug from Bublik: I think emotions are emotions, Bublik says. I guess it's just we live in a world where everyone tries to fake and I think there's nothing wrong in just releasing your emotions in a way because it's a stressful sport. We travel a lot, we play a lot, there's a lot of things on the line so occasionally, if you release it, I guess there's nothing wrong with that."
"Another shrug follows as Bublik considers whether tennis players are generally dishonest in how they present themselves in public: I guess the entire social media is fake, so I guess all the people who are there pretending to be someone they're not. I guess it's fake, he says. Either way, the past 12 months have given Bublik fewer reasons to curse either his adversaries or himself."
"This has been, by some distance, the best year of the Russian-born Kazakhstani player's career. This time last year, Bublik had fallen out of the top 80 and his dire form meant he had to take the disheartening step of dropping back down to the ATP Challenger circuit."
Alexander Bublik’s opponents often find his unpredictability and scathing verbal rants uncomfortable. He has questioned how rivals can be highly ranked while criticizing their games, and he has also expressed scorn for himself and for tennis overall. Reactions to his foul mouth vary, with some viewing his candor as refreshing and others finding it abhorrent. Bublik characterizes his behavior as normal emotional release, arguing that people fake in public and that releasing emotions is acceptable in a stressful sport with constant travel and high stakes. In the past year, his results improved markedly, reversing a prior slump that had pushed him out of the top 80 and down to the ATP Challenger circuit.
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Read at www.theguardian.com
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