From despair to acceptance; Rublev finds a way to maintain his place in world’s top 10

The Russian learned a few life lessons in 2024 that should stand him in good stead for the rest of his career

@ UTS

December 21, 2024

A Masters 1000 title won despite sickness, a default, health issues – a lot happened for Andrey Rublev in 2024.

At no point throughout the year did Rublev drop out of the top 10. In fact, and as a testament to his consistency near the top, you have to go back to August 2022 to find the last time he wasn’t part of the top 10.

What has kept him there are his booming forehand, big first serve and high on-court intensity combined with a never-say-die attitude. On the other hand, he’s been known to be his own worst enemy when it comes to dealing with emotions on the court and his second serve still needs improving if he’s to beat the best in the game more regularly.

two titles but default shows vulnerability

Rublev stacked up 43 victories this season and won two titles, with the first one coming in the opening week of the year in Hong Kong, beating Emil Ruusuvuori in the final. He then lost in the Australian Open quarter-finals to Jannik Sinner, but what really set the rollercoaster of a season in motion was his default at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, following an outburst towards the linesman.

Although Rublev denied that he swore in Russian and despite the fact that the ATP accepted his appeal and allowed him to keep the points and prize money, the default had a lingering effect as Rublev went on to lose four of his next five matches.

And then, out of the blue – a Masters 1000 title in Madrid. Proving that mind indeed can sometimes triumph over matter, Rublev fought through illness as he beat Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz and Felix Auger-Aliassime en route to his second career Masters 1000 trophy. “I was almost dead every day,” he said. “I was not sleeping at night. The last three, four days I didn’t sleep”.

Exhausted and feeling the consequences of what he had been through, Rublev was far from his best for the rest of the clay season and he didn’t regain his form until the hard-court swing in America, where he was the runner-up at the Rogers Cup (lost to Alexei Popyrin), made it to the quarter-finals in Cincinnati and to the fourth round at the US Open.

A health scare following the last slam of the season had Rublev almost not travelling to the Asian swing. Without going into specifics, Rublev told the media: “A couple of days before the flight I needed an operation, which, if not performed, could have led to amputation”.

Rublev: “I wish all my bad seasons end at ATP Finals”

Bruised from all the battles on and off the court, Rublev didn’t perform indoors as well as he usually does, but still finished as No 8 in the world. “Some amazing moments, some tough situations and bad moments. I need to be realistic – maybe I think that the season wasn’t as good as I thought it should be, but I made it to Turin. So, I wish that all my ‘bad’ seasons end at the ATP finals,” he said.

Greatest win: While he beat both Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner this season, Rublev’s greatest victory came off the court. Wearing his heart on his sleeve is what gets Rublev so many fans and his letter to his 12-year-old self was no exception. “What I’ve learned is success isn’t going to make you happy, only you can do that for yourself. When you have choices, listen to yourself, and trust what is right for you. You can’t avoid difficult moments, but if you’re happy with yourself, the difficult moments won’t affect you as much”.

“What if” moment: In his sole Grand Slam quarterfinal of the year, Rublev held a 5-1 lead in the second set tie break over Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open. He lost the following six points and the match in three sets.

Look ahead: Rublev has been an established top 10 player for a while now and he’s been able to win a Masters 1000 title in each of the last two seasons. The next goal is a Grand Slam breakthrough as he’s lost all 10 of his quarter final appearances at the majors. He’ll never be ice-cold on the court and he shouldn’t be, but finding a more balanced approach between intensity and anger might just do the trick and take Rublev in the direction he yearns for.