“Standing Here Is The Best Moment of My Life" - Alexander Bublik's Emotional Reaction To His Stunning Upset Win Today Was The Moment Of The French Open So Far
Let's talk some tennis. The French Open is in full swing and today we had ourselves an awesome moment. To this point in the tournament we hadn't really experienced a signature moment on the men's side. Alcaraz and Shelton played a fantastic, four set match on Sunday, but that was really it. Neither Djokovic nor Sinner have dropped a single set. We've got two Americans in the quarters with Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe doing their thing. First American men in the quarters here since 2003 by the way. But again, nothing really stood at to make this feel unique besides the Nadal farewell ceremony to kick things off. That was until Alexander Bublik upset rising star Jack Draper in four sets this afternoon.
Now here's why this matters —Bublik is one of the best personalities on tour. He's honest, unfiltered, self-deprecating, and unique. You'll NEVER hear him give a robotic answer to an interviewer's question. Click on any Bublik interview and you'll see what I mean. One day he'll admit he hates clay court tennis, the next he concedes he'll never out-work the top players in the sport. He has a line that life isn't about being the best version of yourself, it's about simply being yourself. He'll tell you himself that he hates mornings and can't function when he's scheduled to play first to start the day.
This will shock you, but it's not often you'll see him display laser sharp focus on the court and stringing together a bunch of wins. He called his run to the French Open doubles final a few years a go an "accident." Bublik is a showman and has said in the past if he believes he can't win a match he feels obligated to at least put on a show for those in the crowd. You'll occasionally see him toss in a few under-arm serves and tweeners when he's in full Bublik mode. The result of that is a .500 career singles record and only four titles to his name, none of which have been slams. In fact you'll typically see him lose immediately in slams, with his deepest run ever being the 4th round. While he has the tools and physique to be very successful, it's never been a priority for him. Instead you'll find him smiling out there and having a blast with his fellow players, not really bummed to lose a match. Life goes on for this fella.
Well, today Bublik was locked in, maybe more than we've ever seen him. He hit an outrageous 68 winners on his way to upsetting the world number 5 (soon to be 4) Jack Draper, advancing to his first ever slam quarterfinals. It was a stunning performance that took one hell of a hold at the end to finish the match. Draper would not make it easy.
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But the Kazakhstani player was brilliant.
His on court interview after the match was awesome. You never see him display this kind of emotion on the court.
You can skip through highlights of the match below.
Next up for him will be Jannik Sinner in the quarters. I'll tell ya right now, that's not gonna go well for Bublik. If he takes a set off the world number one I'll be stunned. Beating Draper is one thing, but Jannik is a different animal. That's not to say it'll be a disappointment. Reaching the quarters of a slam is a great achievement and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Good for him though. Such a great soul in the sport who does shit his way and doesn't care what you think. We need more Alexander Bubliks in sports.
P.S. Never a bad idea to get to Vegas and clear the mind