He played well all week, but most people though Zverev would be the favorite. But Alexander Bublik wins his first ATP title in Montpellier.
Alexander Bublik wins his first ATP title in Montpellier and describes it in the following way: “I had four finals and the fifth final I have won against a great player,” Bublik said. “It is great. All my game [came] together. I was serving well and returned well and kept my nerve. When I had my chances, I used them.”
This was his second win against Alexander Zverev, so he leads the head-to-head 2-0.
Bublik will move from #35 to a career-high ranking on Monday. The official ATP Tour website asked him about it:
You’re currently No. 35 in the ATP Rankings and set to rise to a career-high on Monday. How happy are you with where your game is at the moment?
Of course, I’m happy with my game. I’m not sure which ranking I will be in after the win, I never check, but I guess it will be better than 35. I’m happy with the way I played and the way I practiced, so I’m pretty happy.
Alexander Bublik’s racquet
I have written about Alexander Bublik’s racquet here. He is another young player (24), who used the Six One 95 before (like Medvedev and Rublev for example), but has moved to a Yonex DR 98. He used to play with a full bed of Yonex Poly Tour Pro, but this week he has added a natural gut string (or perhaps Yonex Rexis) to the crosses. The idea is to get more comfort and power from his string setup.
This has become quite a trend on tour with Tsitsipas changing his strings and where most pros seem to be looking for a bit more for free from their racquet.
Bublik’s playing style is based on power and feel, so I think his setup makes a lot of sense. And it seems to be working for him too! Congrats Alexander!
