Alexander Bublik glad Carlos Alcaraz’s comments made him feel better

Alexander Bublik has spoken out in support of Carlos Alcaraz after the world number one’s comments at Indian Wells raised some eyebrows.

Alcaraz and Bublik have always seemed to get on well, both spending time inside the top 10 until Daniil Medvedev took over the latter’s spot in the latest rankings.

Medvedev would go on to defeat Alcaraz and book a place in the final, but it was something Alcaraz said earlier in the event that drew even more attention than his performances on court.

Speaking after needing three sets to overcome Arthur Rinderknech, Alcaraz said it felt like every opponent played their best tennis against him, comparing it to facing Roger Federer. The remark didn’t sit well with everyone.

Alexander Bublik appreciates Carlos Alcaraz’s honesty about players stepping up against him

“Well, to be honest, I just sometimes get tired about playing Roger Federer every round,” Alcaraz said in his press conference after beating Rinderknech. “Yeah, sometimes just feel like, yeah, they playing really an insane level.

“I don’t know if I’m feeling not the right way, but I feel it’s just against me all the time. If they play like, you know, that level every match, they should be higher in the ranking. But, you know, obviously it is something that concern me. When I’m just playing, I think about that.

Alcaraz added: “All I can do is just accept it and keep going by trying to do different things in the match – trying not to let him be aggressive or play his style by putting my style and my tennis into the match and turning things around.

Bublik has shared similar thoughts before and told Tennis TV he was glad to see another player voicing what many others have felt.

“For sure it’s not only me,” Bublik continued. “I was just the only one who was actually complaining about that and so when Carlos said that it made me feel a bit better.”

Alexander Bublik still finding it tough on North American hard courts

Bublik has been on a strong run over the past year, picking up five titles, breaking into the top 10 for the first time, and making a French Open quarterfinal appearance.

But despite that success, he still hasn’t found his footing on North American hard courts. That was clear again after an early exit at Indian Wells, where he lost to qualifier Rinky Hijikata.

Across his career, Bublik has played 42 matches between the US Open and the four North American Masters 1000 events, but he’s won only 42.9% of them.

His best showing at the US Open came last year when he reached the fourth round. Even so, his overall record in New York sits at an even split—four wins and four losses.

The farthest Bublik has advanced in any of these events was a quarterfinal run at the Miami Open back in 2021.

He’ll be looking to match or improve on that this year as the 10th seed in Miami.

Bublik starts with a bye into round two and will face either Matteo Berrettini or Alexandre Muller in his opening match.

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