“What the hell is this draw?”: Bublik sparks new rivalry with controversial comment

It’s no secret that Alexander Bublik is one of the more controversial figures on the ATP Tour.

From his underarm serves, to his on-court meltdowns and out-of-the-blue withdrawals, the Kazakh doesn’t shy away from drama across the course of his career.

This week, in a conversation with Casper Ruud and Benoit Paire on the latest episode of UTS’s “All on the Table” series, the world No 32 has again ruffled some feathers with his comments.

This time, it was the ire of French player Corentin Moutet that Bublik raised.

“I’m sorry, no offence, but…” – Bublik on Ruud’s US Open draw

The comment came when Ruud was sharing with Bublik and Paire about his journey to the US Open final in 2022.

Ruud had begun by walking the pair through his earlier matches in the tournament, outlining how he beat Britain’s Kyle Edmund and Dutchman Tim van Rijthoven in the opening two rounds, before meeting No 29 seed Tommy Paul in the third round.

When Ruud explained that after his five-set clash against Paul his round of 16 opponent was Corentin Moutet, Bublik could not contain his surprise.

“What the hell is this draw?” Bublik exclaimed, clearly surprised that the current world No 133 was a fourth round opponent for Ruud at a Grand Slam.

“Except Tommy,” he continued. “But at the time Tommy was 20 [in the world], not 12.”

As Ruud explained the rest of his path through the 2022 US Open, Bublik interjected again to highlight his disregard for the calibre opponent the Norwegian faced:

“So Moutet fourth round, who is quarter-final… Cachin? I’m sorry, no offence, but…”

Bublik’s comment was referring to Argentinian player Pedro Cachin, currently ranked No 70 in the world, who has won four Grand Slam matches across his entire career.

Moutet bites back

In response to Bublik’s comments, Corentin Moutet has bit back on X, reposting a Tweet on December 28th with screenshots of the conversation and caption that made it clear how he felt about the Kazakh’s view of the draw:

“Cameras make people too talkative.”

Commenters on Moutet’s post weren’t too kind however, with several slamming the Frenchman for his online grumblings, and challenging him to support his words with results on the tennis court.

Moutet is currently playing Challenger-level events, with his last Tour competition coming in Shanghai, where he suffered a first round loss to Mackenzie McDonald in straight sets.

Pedro Cachin, who has reason to feel somewhat aggrieved by the stray bullet he caught from Bublik, is yet to respond to the comments.

Read also

Bublik’s mysterious walkover finally explained

Tennis Majors