Russian-Kazakhstani tennis gun Alexander Bublik delivered an all-time blow-up in a humiliating defeat in a single day, smashing three racquets in a row as he misplaced the tie-breaker within the deciding third set.
The defending champion of the Open Sud de France, he returned to Montpellier with excessive hopes – solely to be knocked out within the first spherical in a dire defeat to native hope Gregoire Barrere.
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25-year-old Bublik gave up the primary set 4-6, earlier than successful the second in a 14-12 tie-break, saving three match factors on the way in which.
He earned a break within the deciding set, solely to provide it again when he served three double faults – his often immense serve falling aside beneath strain.
Then the world quantity 50 – an Australian Open doubles finalist in 2021 – started the deciding tie-break by serving one other three double faults.
He quickly fell to 0-6, and unleashed on his personal gear by smashing his racquet – then strolling to his seat, choosing up one other two racquets and demolishing them as properly.
Bublik saved one other three match factors earlier than Barrere completed the job.
Bublik completed the match with a whopping 14 double faults as he misplaced for the seventh-straight match, a run that included a first-round defeat on the Australian Open and two losses within the Davis Cup on the weekend.
And it’s not the primary meltdown we’ve seen from the fiery star, with him showing to surrender on a vital level within the ultimate of final 12 months’s Moselle Open, with Bublik flipping his racquet the other way up and utilizing the deal with to hit the ball.
That got here whereas Bublik was down a break level, and he went on to lose that match to Lorenzo Sonego quickly after.
Originally revealed as Tennis star smashes three racquets in all-time match level meltdown
Source: www.news.com.au
