Alexander Bublik threatened not to come to the US Open anymore during his match against Dominic Thiem. The 25th seed found himself trailing by two sets and a break when he ranted towards his team in Russian. Bublik had already received a code violation for smashing his racket when he lost the second set. And he went on to lose 6-3 6-2 6-4 as Thiem picked up his first Grand Slam match win since January 2021.
Bublik found himself in serious trouble during the first round of the US Open as he had a tricky opponent in 2020 champion Thiem. The Austrian however hadn’t won a match at a Grand Slam since the 2021 Australian Open and was coming in off the back of a gastroenteritis illness which forced him out of last week’s Winston-Salem Open.
But the world No 81 found himself two sets away from his first match win at a Major in almost three years thanks to a dip in form from Bublik. The 25th seed hit nine double faults across the first two sets and smashed his racket after going 6-3 6-2 down, receiving a code violation.
He was then broken in the first game of the third set after another four double faults and could be heard threatening not to return to the tournament as he muttered to his team in Russian. “I don’t want to travel here anymore,” the Kazakh said.
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Bublik also asked his team why he “keeps losing” in America, with the 26-year-old having a 4-4 lifetime record at the US Open. The world No 27 also hasn’t won a singles match since Wimbledon as he lost in the opening round at the Mubadala Citi DC Open and the Canadian Open, skipping the Cincinnati Masters.
The 25th seed couldn’t find his form after letting off some steam as Thiem broke him once again to serve for the match, having been on the court for less than two hours. But Bublik was able to get one of the breaks back, keeping himself alive. Thiem had a second chance to serve for the victory at 5-4, and this time he was able to win his first match at a Grand Slam since January 2021.
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Speaking after the match, Thiem said: “Today I was facing a very, very good opponent, he had a great season. Facing him here was so tough to play with his serve and all his talent.”
As for Bublik, the world No 27 is now on a four-match losing streak since his defeat to Andrey Rublev in the fourth round of Wimbledon. The Kazakh ended the match with 17 double faults hit over an hour and 52 minutes – a stat he won’t be happy with. Bublik is expected to be fined for smashing his racket.
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